A Price to Charge
by Prexistence
Summary: Rogue finds herself growing distant from the others after taking the cure. However, when Bobby begins to ignore her, she begins to harbor feelings for someone else. She starts to find out that the cure wasn't as permanent as she thought.
1. A Price to Charge

This follows the end of the movie, well more like the end of the movie's book. Mainly page 330.

**Couples: Romy (what did you really expect? its' all I write), RoLo, probably Kiotr. Others will be announced later on. And even though I do not like movie Bobby, I will not try to be mean to him. I do like Bobby in the comics, but in the movie I wanted to hit him. **

Rogue finds herself growing distant from the others after taking the cure. However, when Bobby begins to ignore her, she begins to harbour feelings for someone else. Even with all of this going on, she starts to find out that the cure wasn't as perminant as she thought.

**Disclaimer: I own NOTHING!**

Rogue frowned as she watched Bobby Drake sit next to Kitty Pryde again. 'They are just friends.' She continued to remind herself. Ever since she had returned to the mansion after receiving the cure, it seemed like Bobby was even further distant with her.

She had thought if she had taken the cure that the others in the mansion wouldn't be afraid of being near her. Instead, now they looked at her like she was a freak that didn't belong with them. Only a few treated her like nothing had happened.

The Southern girl sighed as she heard Kitty laugh at one of Bobby's jokes. She saw Piotr Rasputin enter the room and smiled. "Hey Pete!" She called to him. Piotr looked at her and gave her a small smile and wave before he sat on the other side of Kitty.

'Another guy that fancies Kitty.' Rogue thought to herself. She knew it wasn't Kitty's fault that Bobby was paying attention to her. She never encouraged him to hang out with her. Bobby just seemed to follow her like he used to follow Rogue.

"Alright everyone, settle down." Warren Worthington said as he entered the room. This was his first day of teaching Scott's class. All the notes were in the other man's office. He had never met Scott, only heard what had happened to him. But still, it felt weird taking someone else's place that was dead. He was afraid he might forget to mention important information, or even if the kids would accept him as a replacement.

Students rushed in at the last moment and took a seat. One girl with raven colored hair rushed in and took a seat next to Jubilee. 'Must be one of the new students.' Rogue thought to herself as she watched the girl put her books away.

Everyone had heard that four new people had joined the mansion. The only ones that knew who they were, were Logan and Miss. Munroe. She had heard from Jubilee that it was two new students, one instructor, and another that was invited by Miss. Monroe.

A boy with blond hair rushed into class as Warren was about to take roll call. "Sorry about this, Mr. Worthington." The boy apologized before he took a seat next to Rogue. "Did Ah miss anything?" He asked her.

"No, he hasn't started yet." Rogue answered him. "Ah'm Rogue, what's your name?" She asked.

"Mah name is Sam Gurthie, also known as Cannonball. Ah just moved in yesterday. This place is very nice, have ya been here long?" He asked her.

"Yeah, sorta." She replied to him. "Ah was travelin' with Logan and we were attacked by a mutant. Cyclops and Storm had saved us and brought us here."

"Sorry, Ah can't help but notice that ya have a southern accent. What part are ya from? I'm from Kentucky." He told her.

"Ah'm from-" Rogue was about to say when her name was called.

"Rogue." Mr. Worthington called out.

"Here." Rogue raised her hand. As soon as Warren went onto another name, Rogue went back to her conversation with Sam. "Ah'm from Mississippi." She finally answered him.

"Danielle Moonstar." Mr. Worthington called. Rogue glanced over at the raven haired girl who raised her hand.

"So, what are your powers?" Sam asked her. Rogue turned back to him and tucked a strand of white hair behind her ear.

"Ah don't have any. Ah did, but not anymore." She replied. She hoped he wouldn't push the issue. The last thing she needed was another person thinking she was a traitor.

"Really? What happened ta them?" He asked her curiously.

"Ya know that cure that they had?" Rogue asked him. Sam nodded, remember seeing the cure on television. It was half of the reason why he was at the mansion to begin with. The people in his town were harassing his family because most of them were mutants. Paige, Joshua, and Melody went to go live with one of his relatives in another state where mutants weren't as feared. His parents had decided to send him to the school instead of going with his siblings.

"Ya, Ah heard of it." Sam said with a bit of a bitter voice.

Rogue closed her eyes. She knew the boy next to her was going to think she was a traitor. "Ah took it."

"Why would ya want ta do that? Ah thought they teach ya how ta control your powers here?" Sam asked her, his voice slightly risen.

"They do, but mahne were beyond control." Rogue replied softly.

"They couldn't have been that bad, were they?" Sam asked, now noticing that the girl seemed sad and began to feel guilty for questioning her.

"Ya, they were." She whispered and faced the front of the class. She folded her arms around her and let her hair fall in front of her face. She began to wonder why she had come back to this place.

Logan marched through the halls ignoring the few students that passed by him. "Hey Mr. Logan?" One of the students said to him as they gave him a funny look. Part of his shirt was torn in a few areas.

He reached Ororo's office and didn't bother knocking. "Ya could have told me what their powers were." Logan growled as Ororo looked up at him.

"I left the information on your desk. It is not my fault you chose to ignore them." Ororo Munroe answered him. "How did they do?" She asked.

"I practiced with Gurthie and Moonstar yesterday. They're ok. I'm puttin' them on my five o' clock Danger Room training." He answered.

"And?" Ororo asked with a smile.

"That women, I don't trust her." Logan growled.

"If I remember correctly, you said you would go one on one with the other two, am I correct?" Ororo raised an eyebrow at him.

"Yeah. Sage did good." Logan muttered, refusing to allow Ororo to know she kicked his butt. "As for your little Cajun friend, if ya find him dead one mornin', don't come cryin' ta me." He growled.

"What did you do to him?" Ororo asked, narrowing her eyes.

"He was pissin' me off. First he started with something about me havin' flees, then moved onto how come I don't have a girlfriend and came up with things I should fix about myself." Logan replied.

Ororo tried to hide a smile. "I'll talk to him and tell him to stop picking on you. I don't want to go into the kitchen one day and find the walls painted in blood. Anyways, how did he do when you fought him?"

Logan raised his arm and motioned toward the burnt marks on his clothes. "Could of told me the kid blew up stuff." He growled.

"As I told you before, that is your own fault." Ororo told him.

"Other than that, he did fine." Logan muttered. "It was weird, it felt like I got de ja vu when I was fightin' him."

_Images of him smacking his head against the floor and a bo staff coming right under his neck appeared. 'For the record, just to make it official. Bang, y' dead.' He could hear the Cajun say with a victorious smile plastered on his face._

"Have you met Gambit before?" Storm asked. "I know he has traveled a lot."

"No, I think I would have remembered that." He responded before he left the room.

**End of Chapter 1**

I really should be writing for my other fics, but this idea popped in my head while I was rereading the book and refused to leave.

So what do ya think of the story? Good? Bad? Why is this crap posted? Tell me!


	2. Memories

**Sorry this chapter took so long. I had it ready to be updated then this site wasn't working. Then I got busy and couldn't get on the computer. So in short, sorry for this long wait. **

**Disclaimer: I own NOTHING!**

"_Okay, Dr. Milbury will be right in after he is finished with another patient." The woman told Rogue with a smile. She picked up a few papers and jotted down a few things before she was about to leave._

"_Ah thought it was Dr. Rao who was supposed ta give the cure?" Rogue asked the woman before she got to the door._

"_With so many mutants wanting to get the Cure, he called Dr. Milbury and a few other physicians to help him." The woman answered. _

"_Thanks." Rogue whispered nervously. _

"_You're nervous?" She asked the Southern girl. _

"_A bit. Ah mean, half of meh wants ta get this done, but ah'm a bit scared." Rogue answered._

"_You have nothing to fear. From what I've heard, it's a simple procedure and will only take less than a minute. Then, you will be normal again." The nurse said before she finally turned to leave._

_Rogue stared at the door as it closed behind and she began to get a little angry with herself. She remembered Storm getting very upset when the cure had been brought up. It had made her feel guilty rushing into the room asking the teachers if there was a cure for them. It seemed she was the only one excited. Truthfully, part of her just wanted to get up and leave the room. She didn't mind the thought of being a mutant, if she didn't have cursed powers. _

'_Ah gotta do this. It's the only way Ah'll be able ta have a life.' She thought to herself as a man with black hair and goatee entered the room. He was very tall and looked to be in his forties or so. _

"_You must be Rogue?" Dr. Milbury asked. _

"_Ya." Rogue answered quietly as she saw the needle in his hand. She gulped as he took out an alcohol swab and brushed it across her arm._

"_This will only hurt for a few seconds." He told her before injecting the needle into her arm. Rogue squeezed her eyes shut._

'_Ah'm doin' this for Bobby and meh. Then he won't have ta suffer everytime Ah try ta touch him. He won't have ta watch all the other couples kiss and hold hands while he is stuck with an untouchable girl.' She thought to herself, trying to distract her from the pain shooting through her arm. _

"_All done, my dear." Dr. Milbury told her as he discarded the needle. _

"_It's done?" Rogue asked as she closely opened her eyes. _

"_Of course. Your mutant powers are now gone." The doctor told her before he left the room in a hurry to move onto the next patient. _

Rogue slowly opened her eyes. She found herself in her room. 'Ah had that dream again.' She thought as she sat up and rubbed her head. It seemed like every other night she would relive having the cure given to her.

"Ah'm sure this will fade." She said to herself before getting out of bed and going to go look for Bobby.

* * *

"There is no way I'm doin' it." Logan growled at Ororo, who sighed.

"Logan, someone needs to do it. Warren is already busy, as am I and Hank." Ororo told him.

"Well than call the elf back here. He doesn't have ta fight, just teach." Logan said to her. He started chewing on his cigar again.

"Kurt said if we ever had an emergency to call him. This isn't an emergency. It is not like it will be that hard. Besides, the kids like you." She smiled.

"No, that's fear. I ain't babysittin' no five or six year old." Logan warned her. Ororo was about to protest when the phone rang.

"Hello, thank you for calling Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, this is Ororo Munroe." She began saying when the person on the other line started talking. "Oh, Moria. How are you?" Ororo asked with a smile.

Logan sighed as he took the cigar out of his mouth and started heading towards the door. He figured there was no use waiting for her to get off the phone. "What?" Ororo stood up. This caught Logan's attention. He turned back to see Ororo looking in shock.

"T-thank you, Moria." Ororo said before she hung up.

"Is everythin' alright, Ro?" Logan asked.

"The Professor's alive." She whispered.

* * *

Rogue sat on the couch quietly and watched her boyfriend and Kitty play pool. She noticed Piotr watching them from the corner. The Russian student kept his eyes on Kitty the entire time and would smile every time she hit a ball into a pocket.

"Ha, beat that, Bobby." Kitty laughed as she won another game. Bobby smirked at her and shook his head.

"I let you win." Bobby teased her. He went to retrieve the balls and place them back into the center of the pool table.

"Uh huh. I really doubt that." Kitty rolled her eyes at him. "I don't want to play another game. I'm tired of kicking your butt." She sighed.

"Come on, just one more game. The loser buys the other lunch tomorrow." Bobby baited her in.

Rogue raised an eyebrow at him. 'He's hitting on her.' She realized and clenched her fist.

"Okay, we'll play one more game. With one exception, Piotr plays too." Kitty said and winked at the slightly older student.

"I don't play too good." Piotr answered quietly.

"Aw, come on, Pete. It's just a little game. What are you chicken?" Bobby taunted him. Piotr narrowed his eyes at Bobby and got up from the chair he was sitting in.

"Fine, one game." Piotr told them and grabbed a pool stick.

Rogue continued to glare over at the three. She was tempted to walk up to Bobby and ask why he was flirting with Kitty. 'Ah'll talk ta him later when no one else is around.' She thought to herself.

"If y' want my opinion." She heard a male voice whisper in her ear. She glanced over to find a young man leaning slightly over the couch. He had shoulder length wavy brown hair and slightly tanned skin. His eyes were hidden beneath black sunglasses. He wore a dark navy shirt covered by a black coat that came to his knees and black pants. "I think he's gay."

"Who?" Rogue asked as she eyed the stranger. She had never seen him here before. He didn't look young enough to be a student here, but not old enough to be a teacher. She guessed he was in his early twenties by his appearance.

"De one y'r lookin' at dat pays attention to all de girls except for y'." The guy answered and came around and plopped down next to her on the couch.

"He's not gay." Rogue growled under her breath.

"And how do y' know?" The stranger asked with a smirk. Rogue scooted away to the other side of the couch.

"He's mah boyfriend." She told him.

"If he's y'r boyfriend, shouldn't he be over here, instead of there?" He asked.

"He's just playing pool with his friends." Rogue defended. In truth, she didn't know if she was trying to convince this guy or herself.

"Uh huh. I've been here for only a few days and everytime I've seen him it's with de petite fille over dere, never with y'. Y' deserve someone who will be dere for y' instead of leavin' y' by y'rself. Especially after all y' did for him." He said to her.

"How would ya know anythin' about meh or him?" Rogue asked him.

"De petite, Jubilee, told moi about de two of y'." He smiled.

'Ah should have known that.' Rogue thought. Anytime Jubilee found news about someone, she would tell the entire mansion

Bobby growled as he walked away from the pool table. Kitty had won the game. He had let her. He thought she would let him take her out, but instead she wanted Piotr to take her out. 'There goes that plan.' He huffed and walked over to Rogue.

"Hey Rogue." Bobby kissed her on the top of her head and sat down on the other side of her, ignoring the other man.

"Hi, Bobby." Rogue said in an annoyed voice.

"This sucks. I was so close to winning. Oh well, I'm sure Kitty and I will have another match some other day." Bobby said as he leaned back into the couch. Rogue got up from the couch and stormed out of the room.

"Rogue? Where are you going?" Bobby called to her.

"Y'r a dumbass." The man sitting on the other side of the couch told him.

"Who the hell are you?" Bobby sneered at the other man.

"De name's Gambit." The other man said.

"Well Gumbo, why don't you mind your own business." Bobby growled at him. He was about to get up from the couch, when a red glowing playing card was held up against his neck.

"Here's a little warnin' for y'. When y' try to cheat on y'r girlfriend in front of her, she's gonna notice." Gambit warned and drew back the card and left the room.

Bobby glared at the door that Gambit left. "I'm really afraid. Rogue wouldn't leave me." He said confidently.

* * *

"Thank you, come again." A woman with black hair said to her last customer. Finally the long line ended. 'This is beneath me.' The woman thought as her boss came up to her.

"Raven, we've been getting complaints about you." Her boss said.

"I didn't do anything." Raven snarled at him.

"And that's another thing, I'm sick of your attitude." Her boss yelled.

Raven tuned her boss out as he continued on his rampage. Her fingers tabbed the side of her desk waiting for him to end. "What do you have to say for yourself?" Her boss shouted.

"I don't care." Raven answered. Her voice had changed. Her boss started backing away from her.

"Y-y-your eyes!" He shouted. Raven looked at a glass window near her and saw her eyes had changed back to yellow and her dark hair returning to red. A smile appeared on her face as her skin shifted to blue once more.

"Actually, I do have one thing to say." Mystique said as she kicked her boss in the face, sending him into a computer. "I quit."

**End of Chapter 2**

I must say I'm in shock. I didn't expect so many ppl to read, let alone review this fic. Thank you to all that reviewed: **mm4ever2gether, Solar Beam, enchantedlight, lunafan, 4Rogue, moonfirefairy, emma134, gatermage, XmenRogueFan, lee, Liz, GABSIEDORA, Chloe, Chica De Los Ojos Café, Secret Agent Smut Girl, sakura5tar, ThingsMakeMeHappy**, and **Colleterby. **(Hugs all of you) thank you for reviewing and telling me your opinions of the last chapter and hope your not disappointed with this chapter.


	3. Cursed No Matter What

**Once again, this chapter would have been up sooner, but this site went down. I'm noticing a pattern. Everytime I try to update the site goes down. Yeah, I think I'm just getting paranoid. **

**Also, sorry in advanced for the really bad Scottish accent. **

**Disclaimer: I own NOTHING!**

Rogue marched angrily to her room. She ignored the other students in the hall as she passed by them. Some would not even look at her. Others would look at her and roll their eyes. 'Why the hell did Ah come back here?' Rogue thought to herself.

"Hello Rogue." The southern girl turned to see a blond walk up behind her and place a hand on her shoulder.

"What do ya want, Emma?" Rogue asked the other girl quietly. She didn't want to be bothered. She just wanted to go to her room and try not to think about what Bobby had just said to her.

"Why Rogue, I am insulted. I've never gotten a chance to know you and you just brush me off like no big deal." Emma said sarcastically.

"It's not like ya really care." Rogue whispered and broke away from the blond. "Just leave meh alone."

Emma smirked as she watched the other girl walked away. "That wasn't very nice, Emma. Even if she is a traitor to mutants." Another girl with dark skin and black hair appeared next to the blond.

Emma shrugged. "Like anyone really cares, Monet. Well except for your good friend, Jubilee." She smiled slyly.

Monet rolled her eyes at the telepath. "Whatever." She muttered before leaving.

Rogue opened the door to her room and closed it right away. "Hey chica." Jubilee waved to her from her bed. She had just moved into Rogue's room the day before since her old room got too crowded.

"Hi." Rogue muttered before she flopped on her bed and buried her head into a pillow. Jubilee blew a bubble with her bubble gum and was about to turn back to her magazine when she noticed a note on Rogue's back.

"Who did you run into this time?" Jubilee asked. She got up from her bed and walked over to the other girl.

"What do ya mean?" Rogue asked, not bothering to lift her head from the pillow. Jubilee pulled off a note attached to her back that read: **Freak!**

"Who was it? The blond bitch, the blond haired bimbo, or the girl trying to steal your boyfriend?" Jubilee asked as she dropped the paper on Rogue's bed.

The southern girl lifted her head and looked at the note and grabbed it. "Ah hate this place." Rogue tried to hold back the tears. 'Ah'm not accepted anywhere.'

"Aw, come on. No crying." Jubilee tried to comfort her with a hug. "We'll go find Bobby and go out to the movies." She suggested.

"Ah don't want ta see him." Rogue growled and pulled away from Jubilee. "He doesn't care about meh. All he cares about is tryin' ta get tagether with Kitty."

"What?" Jubilee's eyes narrowed. "Oh, he is so dead. When I get my hands on him" She muttered and began thinking of ways to get back at Bobby for hurting her friend this much.

"Don't bother." Rogue sniffed and turned away. "Ah did this ta mahself." She whispered.

"What? How could you have done this to yourself? You did everything you could so the two of you could be together and he just throws you away like yesterdays garbage!" Jubilee argued.

"He accepted meh as a mutant, all of the school did. The rest of the world wanted nothin' ta do with meh cause Ah was a mutant. Ah wanted ta be normal. Ta be able ta have a boyfriend and not have ta worry about him dyin' over one simple kiss. Now Ah finally got what Ah wanted, the only place that once accepted meh turns its back on meh. Most of the students won't even look at meh cause Ah took the cure." Rogue cried. "Ah can't win. The rest of the world still thinks of meh as a mutant cause of this hair.'

Jubilee sat and watched her friend cry. There was nothing she could say to make her feel better. She could say things will get better, but she didn't know if they would. She placed a hand on Rogue's shoulder. "I'll always be here for you, Rogue. Just remember that." Jubilee promised.

Unknown to both girls, standing outside the room was one of the newest residents to the school: Gambit. He had wanted to talk to Rogue, but as soon as he heard the crying, he decided against going in and instead listen to the conversation.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Bobby grumbled at the Cajun student.

"Listenin' to de fille cry because of y'." Gambit answered. Bobby sneered at him and pushed past the Cajun and opened the door.

"Hey Rogue." Bobby entered the room with a smile on his face. He closed the door behind him.

"Five, four, three, two," Gambit counted down before a crashing sound was heard from inside the room.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean it, you know I didn't, baby." Bobby said from inside the room.

"GET OUT OF HERE YOU JERK!" Jubilee shouted from inside the room.

"Dat has got to be de sorriest excuse of an apology I've ever heard." The Cajun chuckled before the door opened and Bobby came out with a red slap mark on his cheek caused from Jubilee.

"Fine, can we talk later?" Bobby plead to Rogue.

"Ah'll think about it." Rogue told him. She refused to look at her boyfriend.

Gambit watched the other man smile and leave. "Y'r actually thinkin' of goin' back with dat loser?" He asked as he stepped into the room.

"Ah don't know, maybe." Rogue muttered as she dried her eyes. She was already embarrassed that Jubilee and Bobby saw her cry, she didn't want a stranger to see her this way.

"Y' deserve to be treated much better dan dat, petite." He told her before standing before her.

"Why would Ah take advice from you? Ah've just met ya, Ah don't even know your name." Rogue told him.

"De name's Remy LeBeau." Remy said as he took her gloved hand and kissed it.

"So y' know moi, and I know y'." Remy told her as he let go of her hand.

Rogue shot a glare at Jubilee, who gave her a small smirk. "Hey, this one would be better for you than IcePrick." Jubilee whispered.

"Ah don't think so." Rogue answered.

**Muir Island**

Moria was going over the last of her data files. "Everything looks good here, Charles. Ye should be able to return to your home soon." She told the man sitting on the edge of a medical bed.

"Thank you, Moria." Charles Xavier thanked her. He had been able to mentally alter the body she had been able to put him in. He now looked like he did before he had been torn apart by his former student, Jean Grey.

"It is no trouble. Ye've done enough for me in the past, it's the least I could do." Moria smiled at him. "I contacted ye're home and told them ye were alive. They'll be coming to pick you up tomorrow." She told him.

"Did you find out what happened to Jean?" Xavier asked.

Moria bowed her head. "I hate to tell you this, Professor." A young man entered the room. Moria smiled slighty at her boyfriend. "But we found out Jean was killed."

Charles closed his eyes and shook his head. 'I thought I had taught her better than this. She had control over the Phoenix for how long and it all blew up. I will have to make sure nothing like this happens again.' He thought to himself. He knew as soon as he returned to the mansion he would have to rebuild his own powers. His telepathy was weak since he returned.

"Thank you, Sean." Charles finally replied to the other man.

**Down Town New York City**

John Allerdyce walked down the streets by himself. He kept his jacket close to him as the wind blew harder. He had no where to go. Only a short time ago he was on top of the world and was going to make the world fear him. Now he was nothing.

'Fucking Jean Grey.' John thought to himself. He blamed the red haired woman for everything. She killed practically most of the Brotherhood and the lesser mutants Magneto had been using. His bitterness soon shifted to his former boss. If Magneto had thought his plan through, he would have known that Jean could have been a threat to him.

Now the Master of Magnetism is what he despises most: a homo-saipan. Sometimes he regretted leaving the X-Men. At least there he had a home and had people to talk to, but they would never let him achieve his full potential like Magneto did.

"So, I'm not the only one who survived." He heard a female voice. He spun around, his lighter in his hand to find a gothic looking woman with short black hair he recognized as Arclight.

"What the hell. You were killed." John spat at her.

"If I was killed, why would I be standing her?" Arclight sneered. John glared at her, not trusting this situation at all. He could have sworn he saw her get killed, but then again, it could have been someone else he was thinking of.

"Magneto is alive." She told him before he turned his back on her.

"No duh. He got the cure, not committed suicide." John snarled at her.

"I'm talking about Magneto, not Erik Lehnshirr. His powers are returning and he wants you to return to him." Arclight told him.

"I'm not a dog that will return to his master." John rolled his eyes at her.

"You wouldn't be. He wants you as his second in command once more. He only requests to speak with you." She informed him.

John tilted his head as if he was thinking about it. What harm could it do? He had no where else to go. "Take me to him." He ordered to her.

**Magneto's New Base**

He took it one step at a time. It was like relearning how to walk. Magneto lifted small objects of metal into the air. He could easily manipulate them, but the larger ones he couldn't. He didn't worry thought. He knew as soon as he regained full control of his powers back, he would be invincible once more.

Magneto smirked. He already had a new plan in mind. This one would make sure he never lost his powers again and gain new ones. No human or mutant would be able to get in the way of his dream soon. There was only one little thing standing in his way at the moment.

"Hello, Eric." He heard a familiar voice say and turned to see Mystique standing in the doorway.

**End of Chapter 3**

Special Thanks to: **Solar Beam, lee, Loneraven, bored247, lovestoread, mm2gether4ever, gatermage, irisheyessmiling, AngelofMercy86, lildevil0644, RebelRogue127, phoenixphantasy, AliciaClark, lunafan, Luna Mae, ForeverBrokenForever, AttackingHentaiChibiLoverFl, enchantedlight, and Chica De Los Ojos Café**. (Hugs each and every one of you) thank you guys so much for reviewing and telling me your opinions on this fic. It makes me wanna update this as much as I can.

I have a question: **Should I add Jean and Scott to this fic? I've been debating on it for sometime. **


	4. Returning

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. If I did, X-Men 3 would not have been as bad as it was.

Rogue walked down the long hallway the next day. She had wanted to speak with Logan, but knew he was training in the Danger Room at the moment and wouldn't be free for two hours. Mr. Worthington was out on a business trip and wouldn't be returning till the next day. She needed someone to talk to that was mature and could give her advice and she knew that Miss. Munroe didn't have a class at the moment.

During breakfast earlier, Emma had brushed her arm against her. Normally it would have been no big deal, but she had gotten a tingly feeling. The first thing she had thought was her powers were returning, but knew that was impossible. She had been cured of her mutant powers.

She needed to talk to someone about this. She didn't want to tell Jubilee because she knew the young girl would tell everyone, knowing the motor mouth her friend could be. There was no way she was going to tell Bobby.

His name brought bitter feelings as she thought of him. She had liked him a lot. Okay, that was a bit of a lie, she had grown to love him. She had wanted to be with him more than anyone else in the world. Even more than David. He was the reason she took the cure. So the two of them could have a normal relationship. Then what does he do? He starts flirting with Kitty. She had seen it before she took the cure and thought that the flirting would stop as soon as he could touch his girlfriend, but it only increased. She swore if she saw him at the moment she would either slap or yell at him. Maybe both.

However, she then began to feel guilty again. A part of her believed that Bobby did love her and was just hanging with his friends. She didn't want to be one of those girlfriends that nagged her boyfriend on his every move and knew it might push him away. He was still one of the few that talked to her.

She climbed the stairs to get to Storm's loft on the third floor. Rogue heard a small crash, like a vase breaking, and rushed up the stairs.

"Merde." Remy cursed as he looked down at the broken pot with dirt spilled from it. "Stormy's gonna kill dis Cajun for dis." He muttered and was about to pick it up and try to put it back like nothing happened.

"What are ya doin' here?" Rogue asked the Cajun. "Are ya stalkin' meh?" She asked. It seemed like everyday since she had met Remy he had shown up when and where she least expected.

"Actually, dat was on my list for later on. I was hopin' to find Stormy here, but now I really don' think I'll be up to seein' her later." Remy answered as picked up the broken pot and placed it back by the window.

"Miss. Munroe is gonna be mad at ya for that. She doesn't take kindly ta people who harm her plants." Rogue informed him. She remembered when the white haired goddess made John and Bobby plant new grass all around the school for setting her most prized plant on fire. Even after that, they still had six months detention. Well Bobby did, John only did two before he left to join Magneto.

"Yeah, I kinda know. If she asks, say y' never saw moi up here." Remy said to her. "Why are y' up here anyways?" He asked her.

"Ah was lookin' for Miss. Munroe. What else?" Rogue snapped and rolled her eyes. "If ya see her, tell her Ah was lookin' for her."

"Will do." Remy nodded. Rogue turned to leave. "So, am I going to have de pleasure of seein' y' in de Danger Room?" He asked, an eyebrow lifted up.

"Ah don't think so. Ah don't really need trainin' anymore." Rogue answered quietly.

"How did y' get out of it? I was told everyone's gotta go." Remy stated to her.

"Well, it is kinda hard ta defend yourself or do anythin' in there if ya have no powers." Rogue told him.

"So your de one dat took the cure? I was told about y'." Rogue turned around to face him.

"What did ya hear?" She asked. Her hands making a fist.

"Some said dat y' were a traitor for doin' it. Y'r only here for de free room and board. And a bunch of other crap." Remy replied to her.

"And ya believe all of it too, don't ya?" Rogue growled at him.

"Non, y' must have had a good reason for it. Just wonderin' what it is." Remy tilted his head to the side, waiting for the answer.

"Mah powers were the worst anyone could have. Ah couldn't touch anyone without makin' them pass out. With one touch Ah could take a person's memories. If they were a mutant, their powers. They were ruinin' mah life. Hell, Ah put mah first boyfriend inta a coma." Rogue answered. She fought back the tears that threatened to fall from her eyes. She hated explaining what her powers were.

"Okay, y' win for crappiest powers of de year." Remy commented. He couldn't really relate to what she had gone through. He never had problems with his powers. Sure, maybe when they first manifested all those years ago and he blew the card table up that freaked out his brother and cousin. But he could never image what she went through. To not have control over your own powers and to live in fear that you might hurt someone. He shuddered at the thought.

"Ah had tried ta be patient and try ta learn to control them, but it was hopeless." Rogue muttered.

"What the hell are you two doin' up here?" Logan interrupted the two young mutants. His Danger Room session had ended early.

"None of y'r business, homme." Remy snarled as he backed towards the window. "See y' later, chere." Remy bowed before he took off out the window.

Logan growled. He had thought of slicing the Cajun in two when he first saw him near Rogue. He still got a weird feeling every time he saw the younger mutant "What are you hanging around trash like him for?" Logan asked Rogue.

"He was up here when Ah was lookin' for Miss. Munroe." Rogue answered, forgetting the reason she came up to the loft in the first place.

"Well ya better be ready in two hours, ya got Danger Room practice." Logan told her before he turned to leave.

"What? Ah can't go in there." She protested.

"Oh yes ya are. Ya may not have powers, but you'll be learnin' ta defend yourself. And as long as ya live under this roof, that's how it's gonna be." Logan said before he left. He cursed himself going down the stairs. He sounded too much like a father scolding his daughter.

"Mystique." Magneto smiled at her and got up from his chair. "Why you have never looked better than you do now." He admitted.

"You left me." She growled. "I've been planning my revenge on you ever since you turned your back on me." The blue woman snarled and pulled out a gun. "And now, I'll end your life." She told him. She had seen the news and heard that Magneto had been depowered. Now was the perfect time to strike.

"Your going to shoot me? This is what you've dropped to? Using Homo-saipan weapons to aid you." Magneto sneered.

"I'll use whatever I have to." Mystique muttered and fired the weapon. The bullet never reached the older man. Instead it stopped a few inches away from him. "What?" Her eyes widened as the bullet started expanding. She took a step back before the metal flew back and circled around her, trapping her.

"As you can see, their so called "cure" isn't as effective as they thought." Magneto smiled at her.

"So that means your back?" Pyro asked from behind them. Magneto turned, glad to see the young man chose to return to him.

"Of course. And I have plans for all of us. The world will soon tremble before us, like it should have." Magneto responded.

**Muir Island**

Ororo had arrived only ten minutes ago and was being lead through Moria MacTaggert's medical facility by her boyfriend, Sean Cassidy. "How was Moria able to return the Professor to a body? There was no way he could have survived after what Je-Phoenix did to him." She asked. She still couldn't bring herself to call that thing Jean. Her friend would have never killed anyone.

"You should ask her." Sean responded as they entered into a room. Ororo's eyes went wide when she saw a very much alive Charles Xavier sitting in his wheelchair.

"It is so good to see you, Professor." Ororo said with a smile as she hugged him.

"It is good to see you as well, Ororo. How is the school doing?" Charles asked, curious to know if she was able to handle the job.

"It is doing good. The school has received more students. In a few more days a few more are to arrive. I must admit the job isn't as easy as I thought." Ororo answered him.

"Of course it isn't. Originally I had wanted to leave it to Scott, but unfortunately he is no longer living. And since Jean is gone, you are the only one left, I left it to you." Charles told her as they exited the room.

Ororo didn't say anything. What could she say to him? He basically said she was his last choice for taking over the school. He had originally planned on having Scott do the job.

"It is terrible what happened." Ororo said quietly, trying to change the subject.

"Yes, of course. I knew Jean's dark side was emerging once more before Alkali Lake and I couldn't do anything. I never thought she would kill Scott." Charles said sadly.

Ororo nodded. She looked down at the Professor. Something seemed very off with him, but she couldn't put her finger on it. He didn't seem like the man she had come to admire. He was always kind and patient with all his students.

_There is nothing wrong. I am just tired and wish to return to my home._ Charles telepathically sent to her. This startled her. Had he been reading her thoughts? He had never done that to her or any of his students. Especially invade another person's mind without permission. It was his number one rule with any telepath.

"Of course. We'll be home in an hour." Ororo replied to him out loud.

**End of Chapter 4**

Special Thanks to: **Loneraven, gatermage, irisheyesmiling, Solar Beam, RebelRogue127, AttackingHentaiChibisLoveFluff (sorry for the misspelling?), elawvu3, . . . , sharkies, feartoxin, enchantedlight, bored247, lunafan, LettersFromHome, Linkgirl1, dancingelf1986, Chica De Los Ojos Café**, and **tanza. **You guys have no idea how much I appreciate you reviewing the chapters. I had gotten some suggested ideas for this story, which I had never thought of, but would make it a bit more interesting. Thank you guys so much (hugs ya all)

Also, thank you for the Jean and Scott question. It made my decsion easier to make. :)

There will be new students/mutants joining soon. Any suggestions to who should arrive at the school? I'm open for suggestions.

Next Chapter: It will be a Danger Room that none of the students will ever forget.


	5. Power Break

**I think I'll probably be updating this mostly every week, on a Thursday, Friday, or Saturday. I know this chapter is not that long, but I've been working on it every chance I got. Of course when schools over in two weeks, I'll be able to work on my fics more. Hope ya enjoy the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I own NOTHING!**

Rogue entered the Danger Room last. Already most of the students for the session were already there. Piotr was talking with Kitty and right beside her was Bobby. She glared at her boyfriend as he told the same joke he told everyone in the entire school.

"Just ignore him." Jubilee told her. "If you want, I can send a firework up his ass." She suggested.

Rogue gave a small smile. "Sure, I'd like to see that." She replied. Finally, Sam and Remy entered the Danger Room.

"About damn time. I told ya ta be here early." Logan snarled at the two.

"Ah'm sorry Mr. Logan. Ah was havin' a hard time findin' this place." Sam apologized. Remy on the other hand said nothing and walked right by.

'Thisis great.' Rogue was startled when she heard the voice. 'I'm now not gonna have time ta go to Harry's because of these brats.' She looked around the room. It took her a few seconds to recognize the voice. It was Logan's.

"Alright, this is how it is gonna work. You are all going to be on a mission to protect someone. You will have twenty minutes to protect them from any danger that comes near them." Logan told the students.

Jubilee made her way over to Kitty until she stood beside the brunette girl. "So, Kitty. When was the last time we talked? It's been a while." Jubilee said.

"Yeah, I guess so." Kitty replied, trying to pay attention to what Logan was saying.

"So, how have you been? Got a boyfriend? You know, I always thought you and Piotr would be a cute couple." She told her.

"You think so?" Kitty asked, now turning her full attention to Jubilee. "He is really cute and have you seen his drawings? They're amazing." Kitty added.

"You should go get him. You don't want someone else to make a grab for him." Jubilee told her.

"Make a grab for who?" Bobby asked from behind them.

"We're talking about how hot Piotr is." Kitty replied, not bothering to turn around.

"We need to set this girl up. I mean, you already are dating Rogue. Poor Kitty has no one." Jubilee stated and noticed Bobby look over at Rogue. She noticed he looked ashamed and wondered if it was because he had been neglecting Rogue.

"So any questions?" Logan asked the students.

"Who are we supposed to protect?" Colossus asked.

"Rogue." Logan said before he turned to leave.

"What!" Rogue yelled. "Why do Ah have ta be the one they protect? Ah thought Ah was supposed ta learn how ta defend mahself!" She protested.

Logan didn't say anything, he just continued to walk away, but Rogue heard his thoughts. 'I'll make sure nothing happens ta ya, kid.'

"Don't worry, Marie." Bobby said to her. "I'll make sure nothing happens to you." He told her.

Rogue rolled her eyes. "Ah doubt that." She muttered and turned away.

'If I blew him up, will anyone really care?' She heard another voice say. She looked over at Gambit and found him watching Bobby. She gave a small chuckle before the program started.

**Control Room**

"It took you that long to explain a procedure to them?" Tessa aka Sage asked as Logan entered the control room.

"Two of them were late." Logan muttered. "How many more are comin' tomrroow?" He asked.

"Only three." Sage replied from memory. "Jonothan Starsmore, Lorna Dane, and Alison Blaire. We will also be having a teacher, Betsy Braddock, joining us."

"Great." Logan muttered.

"Would you mind explaining this?" Sage asked Logan before he started the simulation.

"They have to protect Rogue for twenty minutes. If things get outta hand, I'll stop it." Logan told her. Sage didn't say anything, but look through the window at the students.

"I know that, but why didn't you just have the Danger Room create a person for them to protect?" She asked him.

"I don't see the difference. They're still protecting a human." Logan told her, getting annoyed. He started the simulation.

"I don't believe she will be needing protecting." Sage stated.

**Danger Room**

Rogue stood in the middle with her arms folded across her chest. The rest of the students surrounded her as large robots appeared and began approaching the young mutants.

Colossus made the first move by running at one of the robots and punching it's leg out. It shot a laser at his metal body, but it did no damage.

Another robot landed near Cannonball and Iceman. "This is going to be easy. I'll ice him, you blast him." Iceman told Sam, who nodded. The robot tried to step on the two, but they rolled out of the way. Iceman then froze the robot's legs and Cannonball flew at it, breaking it.

"This is so pointless." Rogue muttered as she watched the others fight. She saw Bobby coming back near her with a satisfied smirk on his face.

"Did you see the one I just took out?" Iceman asked her.

"Yeah, great job." Rogue replied, refusing to make eye contact with him.

"Hey, maybe after this we can go to the movies or something?" He asked her.

"Maybe." Rogue said. Suddenly, two robots appeared before them.

"Don't worry, I'll get them." Iceman told her confidently. He began freezing the one robot and almost completely forgot about the other. The robot's hand began to reach down to capture Rogue when a card hit it and broke it off.

"Y' alright, chere?" Gambit asked her.

"Ya, Ah'm alright. Thanks." She gave him a small smile and watched as he threw more cards at the robot to take it down once and for all.

"Hey, I was handling that!" Iceman yelled at Gambit.

"Nice job y' did there, Iceboy." Gambit rolled his red on black eyes at him.

"Why don't you just go help Jubilee or something. I'm protecting Rogue." Iceman stated. Rogue looked at him annoyed. She hated this whole thing. She didn't want to be protected. She didn't want to have to relay on someone. Especially if that person was Bobby.

Gambit took out another card and charged it. "You want to fight? Bring it on, Cajun!" Iceman iced up. Gambit threw the card and it missed Iceman and hit the robot behind him.

"Why don' y' go back to kindergarten. When y'r ready to play with the big boys, den y' can come back." Gambit sneered at him before he went to help Jubilee, who had just gotten hit by one of the robots.

"I can't believe that guy. What an asshole."Iceman told Rogue.

"And he's right, about you at least." Rogue told him. "Stop actin' like a little kid." She told him before a robot's foot came between them. It knocked Iceman away and left Rogue alone and defenseless.

The robot's fingers then opened up and fired at her.

**Control Room**

"What the hell!" Logan yelled and ran to shut down the program. He typed in the code, but it didn't work.

"The number you have entered is invalid." A computerized voice said.

"Sage, get over here and shut it off!" Logan ordered, but the woman just stood and watched.

"Don't wet yourself, she's fine." Sage stated. Logan walked over to the window and his eyes went wide at what he saw.

**Danger Room**

Rogue had her arms over her head before the laser could hit her. Her eyes were closed tight. She suddenly felt something cover her body and then felt a little thud as the laser finally hit. Rogue opened her eyes to find the robot still standing in front of her and then disappearing as the program turned off.

She looked over to see the other students staring at her in shock. She looked down at her hands and found them covered in the same metal as Colossus. The metal began to retract itself and her normal light colored skin appeared.

"What is happening?" Rogue whispered terrified.

"Rogue, are you alri-AH!" Shadowcat asked as she touched Rogue's arm and immediately fell to the ground. Rogue held her head as memories entered her mind.

"Rogue!" Iceman began running towards her.

"Get away from me!" Rogue yelled and raised her hand at him. Fire shot out at Bobby, who immediately got out of the way. She put her hand down quickly and fell to her knees.

"Get out of here!" Logan yelled to the rest of the students as he and Sage entered. "Kid, are you alright?"

"Logan, what's happenin' ta meh?" Rogue asked.

"You're powers are returning." Sage answered for him.

**Transia**

"_Lastly, we are happy to report that Worthington Labs is rebuilding after being torn down by the mutant terrorist, Magneto." _A reporter on the television said before it was clicked to a different channel.

"Hehe. Magneto. What kind of idiot walks around calling himself that lame name." A young man about the age of nineteen laughed. Silver strands of his hair falling into his face.

"This coming from the same person who calls himself Quicksilver." His sister, Wanda, sneered.

"Hey, I got a reason for that. I mean, has anyone ever beaten me in track? No. I am the fastest guy in the school, this country, and-probably-this-world." He replied with a smirk. Wanda raised a hand to her head.

"Will you shut up. I have a headache." She growled at her brother, Pietro.

"You're-just-jealous-of-your-hot-brother." Pietro told her before he got up to stretch from the couch.

"I told you to SHUT UP!" She yelled. The lights around the room began to flicker on and off. The television cracked across the screen.

"Um, Wanda?" Pietro whispered and began to back away slowly. Soon, he felt a force hold him and saw little blue sparks dancing around his feet.

Wanda looked around the room and began walking backwards herself. "What's going on?" She asked.

"I'm not a rocket scientist, but I think you're doing this." Pietro answered her. "Can you please shut off whatever you're doing?" As soon as he asked, she let go and he fell backwards. "Thank you."

Wanda sat down on the nearest couch and covered her face with her hands. "What is happening to me?"

"I don't know." Pietro said as he got up. He walked over to his sister and sat on the arm rest. "We'll find out and help you." He promised her and patted her shoulder.

**End of Chapter 5**

Special Thanks to: **sharkies, AttackingHentaiChibisLoveFluff, Loneraven, lunafan, Kelsey, Kari Lynn Craine, bored247, enchantedlight, Black Canary II, AngelofMercy86, Chica De Los Ojos Café, and katandrayforever**. Thank you guys so much for reviewing the last chapter and telling me what you thought. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter as well. (Hugs you all and gives everyone ice cream)

Next Chapter: Prof. X is back and talks with Rogue. The new students arrive.


	6. Truth and Lies

No one is probably reading this, but I'll write it anyways. My computer died and it made me lose motivation to write. My brother let me borrow his for the time being, so I'm going to try to update a few time before i have ta give this back to him. And once again, sorry this took so long to be updated.

**Disclaimer: I own NOTHING!**

Logan had walked Rogue down to the Professor's office after stopping in the kitchen so she could get a drink of water to calm her down. He glared at any student that stared at Rogue. Most likely, they had heard what happened in the Danger Room.

Logan knocked on the door and waited for the Professor to respond. _Come in, Logan_. He heard in his head. He gave an annoyed sigh as he pushed the door opened. He hated people being inside his head.

"What may I do for you?" Charles asked with his right hand rubbing his forehead.

"Tell him, kid." Logan told Rogue. "If ya need me, I'ma be in Cerebro with Ro." He said before leaving and shutting the door behind him. Rogue took a seat in front of the Professor's desk. She was about to begin, when a question entered her mind.

"Professor? How are you alive?" Rogue asked. She had thought there was no way he could be sitting in front of her after what Jean had done to him. She remembered Bobby telling her as soon as she came back to the mansion.

"That is none of your concern. Now why are you here?" Charles asked, his voice sounding a bit annoyed.

Rogue swallowed and folded her hands in her lap. "Ah had taken the cure ta get rid of mah powers." She started and looked down at her gloved hands. She had just been getting used to not having to wear them, now they were back on like shackles.

"It didn't get rid of mah powers. It made them increase. Today when we were in the Danger Room, one of the robots was about ta crush meh, but Piotr's powers saved meh. And then Ah had also used Pyro's powers and Ah know there is more than that in meh. It's scaryin' meh. Ah don't want this." Rogue told him. She could feel tears enter her eyes.

"Well, do you have control over them?" Charles asked her.

Rogue shook her head. "No, Ah don't know what is causing these powers to show themselves. Ah don't know how ta call them out either."

"I see." The Professor said and leaned back in his chair. "Now Rogue, when I tell you this. I don't want you to interrupt me. This is the only solution that will help everyone."

"What is it?" Rogue asked him. She prayed that he knew how to get rid of all the extra powers, along with her original ones.

"I think you should leave this school." He told her.

"What?" Rogue almost shouted. "How is that gonna help meh?" She demanded.

"Face the truth. You don't belong here. You never did. I can only help those who wish to be helped, but you were always afraid. That is why you took the cure, wasn't it? You wanted to look for an easy way out and it backfired on you. And now your powers are returning to a degree beyond before. I don't want any one of my students or family harmed, that is why I am asking you to leave my school." Xavier told her.

Rogue backed away from his desk. This wasn't the same Professor she had met when she first came to this school. The one she remembered was kind and didn't care how long it would take, he would help her at her own pace.

'It's because I got tired of your whining_.'_ She heard a voice say in the back of her head. She ran out of the room, phasing right through the door.

"I can't believe she did that!" Bobby huffed as he leaned against the wall. Piotr, Kitty, Jubilee, and Remy were standing in the Rec. Room.

"Maybe it's because you deserved it." Jubilee shot at him.

"Now, Jubilee. That's not nice." Kitty gave a disapproving look at her friend. "Bobby deserved to be thrown into a volcano." She stated.

"I thought you were on my side?" Bobby glared at the younger girl, who leaned against Piotr.

"No, you're my friend and Rogue is my friend. You hurt Rogue emotionally. She tried to hurt you physically, but missed, so she is higher on the sympathy card." Kitty told him.

"Yeah, well when she kills me, will I be higher on the sympathy card?" Bobby asked sarcastically. "You guys don't get it. She could have seriously killed me in there if I got hit. I don't know what's wrong with her."

Remy looked towards the door and saw a shadow running the opposite way. He could feel emotions of sorrow in the air and knew exactly who it was.

"Boy." Remy said as he came up next to the younger man and put a hand on his shoulder. "I'll give y' a little advice." He told him before he slammed Bobby's head into the wall and let him fall to the ground. "Y' need to learn how to shut y'r mouth." He said before he left the room.

"What the hell is his problem?" Bobby grumbled and felt his forehead and found a small cut.

"I'm guessing that Rogue heard what you said." Piotr answered.

"Oh shit." Bobby whispered. He hadn't meant for Rogue to hear that.

**Cerebro**

Logan stood outside Cerebro. "Open up." He glared at the doors. They had to create a new password when they installed the new doors after Jean destroyed them. Unfortunately, Ororo was the only one who knew the password.

"Access: Denied." The machine's voice said through the halls.

"How about I shove one of my claws inta?" Logan threatened.

"Mr. Logan, that is not proper behavior in this school." The machine repeated.

'Who the hell programmed this thing to respond?' He grumbled and unsheathed a claw. "I'll show ya proper behavior." He was about to cut his own door when they open.

"Logan, we can't afford to keep rebuilding parts of the mansion." Ororo scolded him as the doors completely opened.

"Why doesn't Chuck just make this place outta Lagos? It would be cheaper." Logan muttered as he entered into the room. "What did ya wanna talk about?" He asked.

Ororo turned away from him and started walking down the narrow walkway. "Have I been a good leader?" She asked him.

"Yeah, of course ya have." Logan answered her without thinking twice.

"As good as Scott?" She asked.

"Hell yeah. You don't argue as much with meh and you're much better to look at than he was." Logan responded with a smile. "What gave ya the idea ya were doin' bad?" He asked.

Ororo just shook her head. She didn't want to tell him that it was the Professor. "I've been doubting myself." She told him.

"Hey, why don't we forget about all this. Chuck's back, now he can do all that shit. Why don't we go out to a bar or somethin'." Logan suggested.

"I'm not really the bar type." Ororo said to him.

"Ahh, come on. I'll pay for it." Logan offered. "What harm can it do? Besides, we'll get ya off of thinkin' like that." He offered his hand to her. She looked at it for a second before giving him a smile and taking it.

**Magneto's Base**

Magneto continued to read through his reports. One of his spies on Muir Island informed him that Charles Xavier was alive. It hadn't really surprised him. Sure it put a set back in his plans, but in the end, he would accomplish his mission.

A knock at his door interrupted him. John entered the room, along with Arclight. "We found something you should see." He told his boss.

"Is it really that important that you can't deal with yourself?" Magneto asked him.

"I recommend you come, or we will dump the body." Arclight offered. Magneto glared at her for attempting to threaten him.

"Very well. This better be important." Magneto told them as he got up from his desk and followed them down the hallway.

"We had gotten in touch with Madrox. He had found someone that should be useful to us." John filled him in.

They entered into a small room and found a figure lying on a bed unconscious. "Well. I am glad you made me come." Magneto smirked as he approached the figure.

"I say we tell the X-Men we have him and say we will kill him if they don't do what we want." Arclight suggested.

"No, that will never work." Magneto told her. "We will have him join us. After all, the X-Men versus their leader should make to be an interesting show." He smirked at his lackeys. "Don't you think?"

**End of Chapter 6**

Special Thanks to: **Loneraven, BlackCanary, bored247, GothicGirly, gatermage, UltimateRider, Leash, Kari Lynn Craine, bloodytear89, lovestored, AquaRias, sharkies, Chica De Los Ojos Café, lunafan, sleepy26, enchantedlight, laenamoradadedGAMBIT, falconReign, AngelofMercy86, AttackingHentaiChibisLoveFluff, Celtic Cross, Special2, and Coletterby**. Thank you guys so much!. (hugs you all). YOU ROCK!

Next Chapter: I know last chapter I said new students arrived, but my notes got deleted so I'm redoing them. Next chapter they arrive. Rogue packs. More of Xavier acting like a jerk I'm sure. And some other things.


	7. Not Alone

I got X-Men 3 two days ago, really made me wanna start writing. Also, the movie kinda made me hate Wolverine. I think it's cause I'm sick of him.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own any of the characters in this fic, they belong to Marvel. If I own Marvel, Gambit and a whole bunch of other characters would be abused by crappy writers.

Rogue tried to push the tears away as she packed up some clothes into a duffle bag. She had just unpacked a week ago and now was packing to leave again. This time, it was for good.

She didn't belong with mutants and she didn't belong with humans. She knew she wouldn't be accepted anywhere she went. There was only one solution in her mind: she had to retake the cure. That way she could start over. Maybe move back to Mississippi and find a job and an apartment. 'Unless there is more of that cure. He still has ta be there. Ah mean, it couldn't have all been destroyed.' She thought herself.

She had finally got done packing and zipped up the bag. She looked over at her dresser and at the picture on top of it. It was a group photo of Jubilee, Kitty, John, Piotr, Bobby, and herself. It was the day right before Logan had returned to the mansion. She took the photo out of the frame and shoved it into her pocket.

"And this is the dorm area. This is the girls. The guys are over there." She heard Jubilee's voice say. Rogue stepped away from the door. She didn't want to have to say good-bye to her friends. She knew they would probably try and stop her. Instead, she went to the window and popped it open. She threw her bag onto the grass.

She could feel ice form in her hands and she shot it out the window, creating a slide. She slid down to the grass and picked up her bag. "Good-bye." She whispered as she turned back to look at the mansion one last time.

She walked out of the gates. There was a bus station a few miles down the road and knew she could walk the distance since she only had enough money for the bus and not the cab.

Unknowing to her, as soon as she turned the corner, she was being followed.

A knock at his door disturbed him from his work. "What is it, Henri?" Charles Xavier asked, allowing the blue furred mutant into his office.

"I just wanted to inform you that the new students have arrived. Lorna Dane, Allison Blaire, and Jonothan Starsmore. Betsy Braddock should be arriving later today. Her flight was canceled and had to be rescheduled. I also looked at next week and we have more entering. I had just gotten a call from a Mr. Maximoff, he and his sister would like to join our school. I don't think it will be a problem. Also, Alison Crestmore, " Hank told Xavier.

"Thank you. You may leave now." Charles said, wanting to get rid of the other man.

"Don't you want to meet the new students? Usually you-" Hank stated before Charles interrupted him.

"I don't have the time right now. I will meet with them at a later notice. I have a lot of work to do that wasn't done when Ororo was running the school. Otherwise, I would have time." Charles snapped at Hank, who was shocked at the outburst.

"I'm sorry. I did not realize you had more important things to do." Hank said before turning to leave.

"I will meet with them on Thursday. Have some of the students show the newer ones around." Charles told him.

"Yes, sir." Hank replied before he left and entered the hall to see three young mutants standing outside. "I'm sorry, but the Professor will not be able to meet with you today." He told them.

"So, what are we going to do now? I thought he was going to give us our schedule?" Alison asked him.

"I shall get them for you by the end of today. You won't be starting your classes until tomorrow. In the meantime, I shall find some people to show you around." Hank told them. Just his luck, Jubilee, Kitty, and Piotr were coming through the living room. "Ah, just the people I was looking for." He smiled.

"Uh oh, this can't be good." Jubilee whispered.

"I need you three to show them around the school. They just arrived. I've arranged for their belongs to be placed in their rooms already. Lorna and Alison." He motioned toward the green and brown haired girls. "Will be staying on the second floor, third door. Right next to Rogue and yours. Jonothan, will be staying in Piotr's room." Jubilee looked over at the new boy and noticed he looked down. He wore all black and had a black scarf wrapped around his jaw.

"I will show you-" Piotr began to say to Jonothan, when Jubilee cut him off.

"Hey Rusty, why don't you show Alison or Lorna around. I'll show him around." Jubilee insisted and gave Piotr a 'don't-ask-just-do-it' look.

"Why don't you two come with us? We'll show you around." Kitty told the two new girls.

"So, where did you come from?" Jubilee asked as she took a hold of Jono's arm and started walking him down the hallway.

_I'm from England._ Jono responded, startling her. _Sorry, this is the only way I can talk._ He apologized.

"It's alright. It just scared me for a second. So, what are your powers?" She asked, knowing already he was a telepath.

_I have a psionic energy power. It's the reason I have this scarf around my face._ He answered and saw the confused look on Jubilee. It blew off my jaw.

"Oh my god." A hand covered her mouth. Jono turned away, already thinking that she didn't like him. His parents had thrown him out. His friends wanted nothing more to do with him after seeing what his powers did. People had called him a freak and a monster. "How did you deal with it?" She asked him.

Jono shrugged. _I came here, hoping to be around people who would accept me_. He answered shyly.

"Don't worry." She hugged him. "Anyone gives you problems here, I'll take them out!" She promised.

Logan and Ororo had entered Harry's Bar a half an hour ago and were sitting in a booth in the far corner. They ignored the noise of people hollering at the TV and the music in the background. "What's wrong, Ro?" Logan asked her. They had spent a few minutes in silence after talking about Scott and Jean.

"What do you mean?" She asked him, raising an eyebrow.

"At the mansion ya were depressed. I could smell it." He told her. "One of the kids make a comment about ya runnin' the school?" He asked, remembering her asking him if she was doing a good job.

"No." She replied and folded her hands on the table. "Don't tell anyone else this, especially Charles." She told him, getting his attention. "When I went to pick him up, he told me he had wanted to leave the school to Scott instead. And if something ever happened to Scott, Jean was supposed to be in charge. He thought I couldn't handle it." She told him.

"Well, ya proved Chuck wrong, didn't ya?" Logan said as he reached across the table and took her hand in his. "More students have arrived at the school than ever before. All of those kids got respect for ya, even before ya became the headmaster. If Charles thought Scott could do a better job, he's wrong. You're a lot stronger than anyone in that school."

Ororo gave a small smile and leaned across the table to kiss Logan on the cheek. "Thank-" She began to say when he pulled her closer to kiss her deeply on the lips.

Rogue walks around the sidewalk with her bag draped across her shoulder. She kept her head down and distance away from anyone that she encountered. She didn't have to look up to see people staring at her, she could feel their eyes on her. 'After this, Ah'm dyin' mah hair.' She thought as she turned the corner.

"Hey baby." She heard a male voice say from behind her, then felt a hand clasp her shoulder. She turned around to find four men behind her and felt herself being shoved into an alley.

"Leave meh alone!" Rogue snarled and yanked her arm away from them and backed away. "Ah'm warn ya, get away from meh now." She told them.

"Or you'll do what? Scream for help? Cops don't come around this area and do you really think anyone will be coming to help you? Don't count on it." One man laughed as he moved closer.

"I say we have some fun with her first. Then maybe take her back so if we ever get bored, we got something to do." Another smiled at her.

"This is your last warnin'. Leave meh the hell alone!" Rogue shouted. She felt more nervous than frightened. She didn't want these men touching her. The last thing she wanted was their memories inside her head.

"Come here!" The man in the back reached forward, past his friends, and grabbed Rogue by the arm. His smirk began to leave him when ice started traveling up his arm. "What the hell? The girl is a fucking mutant!" He screamed before he was completely covered in ice.

Two others backed away from her, not knowing what to do now. The last man reached for a gun in his back pocket and aimed at her. "Screw fuckin' her, let's just kill her." He said to his friend and fired at her. The bullet stopped inches from her and Rogue backed away from it. Suddenly, the gun flew out of the man's hand and landed behind Rogue.

"I'm out of here!" The rest of the men ran off, leaving their frozen partner. Rogue looked down at her hands and shook her head. The entire time, she had been thinking of Magneto's powers when she made the bullet stop and the gun fly. However, Bobby's powers had popped out of no where.

"They'll be gone soon." She whispered. She was about to move when she heard clapping.

"Ya know, usually, when de girl gets attacked de man's supposed to save her." She rolled her eyes as Gambit jumped down beside her. "I'm impressed."

"Were ya followin' meh?" Rogue snapped at him.

"Oui. You shouldn't be going by yourself, it's too dangerous." Remy responded.

"Ah can handle it. Ah got rid of those guys, didn't Ah?" Rogue muttered.

"Not talkin' about physically, meant emotionally. It gets lonely by yourself. Why don' I accompany y' to where ever it is y' wanna go. After dat, I'll leave." Remy bargained with her.

Rogue shook her head. "Ah." She began to say. 'Don't want you or anyone else getting hurt because of mah powers.' She thought to herself.

"Well, den I'll take that as a no." Remy shrugged and turned around to walk off.

"Wait!" Rogue yelled. Remy stopped and glanced at her. "Just ta Chicago and that's it." She told him.

Gambit smirked and nodded. "We'll we should be goin'. I can get y' dere a lot faster than de bus." He told her and placed an arm around her shoulder.

"Don't touch me." She backed away. "You are not allowed to touch meh anywhere on this trip. If ya do, Ah'll knock ya out, swamp rat!" She warned him.

"Aw, y' got a pet name already picked out for moi." He smirked at her.

"Another rule: no talking." Rogue ordered and walked ahead of him.

Gambit smirked as he followed her. 'Now dis be a challenge worth playing for.' He thought to himself.

**South Side of Chicago**

Warren Worthington Sr. sat in his office with his hands on his forehead. He didn't know what to do now. He had spent so long trying to find a way to 'cure' mutants. When he had finally accomplished it, he thought they would be grateful. Surely, no being would enjoy looking like a freak. He hadn't expected so many to hate it and retaliate against it. Especially his son.

There were hundreds that had taken the cure, but he had been receiving reports that it had been reversing and their mutant powers were returning. He had thought about trying it again and making a new cure that would last. However, after the outburst and all the deaths caused by the first one, he was afraid of the results.

His thoughts came to a hault when he heard screams coming from the lobby of his office. Warren got up from behind his desk and approached the door and peaked outside.

To his horror, he saw his secretary running for the stairs, but was attacked before she made it. He closed the door and locked it. He ran to his phone and picked it up to call 911. He dialed the numbers and then placed the phone next to his ear, only to find the line was dead. He slammed the phone down and reached into his pocket for his cell phone. However, before he could pull it out, the door slammed open and a knife sailed through the air and hit the security camera.

"Don't you just hate those things?" A male voice said as he entered the room. He wore all red with a mask and twin swords strapped to his back.

"What do you want?" Warren asked with a hint of fear in his voice. "Money? I can get you whatever you want if you let me go. No one has to know about this." He plead.

"Hmm." The stranger placed his hand to his chin to think. "That does sound tempting, but where is the fun in walking away. No, no I think it will be much more fun if we go with what I originally planned to do." He said and grabbed his two swords.

"Who hired you?" Warren asked. He pulled out his cell phone and hid it behind his back. He knew if he could stall long enough the police would get here and he would be safe.

"Now does that really matter? Your going to be dead soon. So let's switch this, I ask you the question instead." The masked man said as he got closer. "Do you want a slow death or a long death? Do you want some of your limb's missing? They make such a nice gift for family members."

'This man is insane.' Warren thought. "Please, we can work something out. You don't have to kill me. I am Warren Worthington Sr." He shouted loud enough so the operator on the phone would hear and hopefully be able to track the call.

"This is the best part about this job, when the victim starts bargaining and saying they are too important to die. Well, you can tell the worms how important you are." The swordsman replied before he raced at the millionaire.

"No please!" Warren screamed before the sword pierced him the in the chest and the other in his stomach. He dropped the phone to the ground and felt himself growing cold as the other man twisted the swords inside him. Finally, the assassin threw him off of the swords and crashing through the window and into the streets down below.

"Say hi to Satan for me!" The assassin called after the dead man. He heard a female voice on the floor and saw the cell phone. He picked it up and put it next to his ear.

"Sir, are your alright? What happened?" The 911 operator asked frantically.

"Hi, my name is Deadpool. I like long walks on the beach and being able to snuggle up to the special someone at night, if you are interested please look me up." He said before clicking the phone shut.

**End of Chapter 7**

Special Thanks to: DarkAngelmi818, Chica De Los Ojos Café, Loneraven, MiruSedna, lovestoread, emma134, Jean, gatermage, Leash, Special2, AngelofMercy86, AttackingHentaiChibiLovesFluff, laenmoradadeGAMBIT, enchantedlight, Maxi-lou, In My Memories, falconReign. Thank you guys for being patient with me with the slow updates. I'm trying to get them up faster. School and Work have been in the way a lot. (Hugs you all).


	8. Pick a Card

This chapter pretty much goes into the background of a few of the characters.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own any of the characters within this fic, if I did, the X-men movies wouldn't have revolved around Wolverine and gave other characters some parts. And come on!! There are more villains than Magneto!!!

* * *

After the tour, Kitty, Piotr, Lorna, Jubilee and Jono met in the lounge. Alison decided she wanted to arrange her room and get everything unpacked. "So, what do you guys think of the place?" Kitty asked the two new students.

"It's beautiful. I wish I found this place sooner." Lorna commented. Jono shook his head in agreement.

"Why don't we get to know each other? You can go first Lorna." Jubilee suggested. Lorna looked a little nervous talking to them after just meeting them a few hours ago.

"Well I grew up in San Francesco with my mom and step father. My mom refused to tell me who my real father was, but I didn't really care who he was. My step-father was nice to me until my powers developed. I ended up ripping the metal pipes out of the house on accident. I didn't know how to control my powers. He told me to come back when I was normal like everybody else. Mom was supportive of my powers and wanted to help me. We stayed in a hotel away from my step father until we found this school. As of now, I heard they are in the middle of a divorce." Lorna explained. She looked at the others and they nodded understandingly.

"There are a lot of families that don't understand us. Bobby, he's another student here, when his parents found out they flipped out and his brother called the cops on him." Kitty told Lorna and Jono. She was one of the lucky ones. Her family was very understanding and supportive.

"I don't understand how parents can support their kids and then turn their backs on them if they become a mutant." Lorna muttered.

_It's because the media has made us into monsters that need to be tamed._ Jono finally spoke.

"That is true." Piotr agreed. "All over the news there is nothing but hatred for us. Even in Washington they are trying to find ways to control us. Look what happened two years ago when the school was attacked."

"Yeah, but they shut that down." Kitty told him.

"What happened?" Lorna asked curiously.

"This Stryker guy" Jono's eyes went wide and stared at Jubilee as she talked. "he had his guys attack the school and capture mutants. He tried this thing to get rid of all mutants because his son was one. Then Wolvie, Cyke, and the rest went and kicked his ass. We won, obviously. And Xavier went to the president and talked to him." Jubilee summarized to the best she could remember.

_I've heard of William Stryker._ Jono said quietly. The others turned the attention to him.

"How?" Kitty asked him.

_When my powers developed they blew off my jaw and destroyed everything in sight. It took me hours, but I was finally able to contain them. My parents were scared of me and my friends wanted nothing to do with me. My mom called the group that experimented on mutants; it is called the Weapon X Program. They came and took me. The man in charge goes by the name of Malcolm Colcord. He has scientists there that experiment on mutants and try to find ways to use their powers for government purpose. I had heard him talking about William Stryker and his best experiment; Weapon X. Apparently, this mutant escaped and they were never able to find him. _Jono paused for a moment and glanced at the others and found them intrigued by what he had to say. _I remember sitting in my cell and hearing screams throughout the place. Finally, there was a riot and I was able to break out._

"Is this place still open?" Kitty asked him.

Jono shrugged. _I don't know. It could be._ He replied.

"We should maybe tell the Professor or one of the teachers. There could be others there that need help." Jubilee commented, thinking the same thing the others.

**South Side of Chicago**

Warren Worthington the third stared in horror at his father's office building. Cops had taped off the building and told him he was not allowed to enter. His father and he had finally started to talk again a few weeks ago. He had been mad at his father for funding the cure on mutants, but after the disaster with Magneto, his father pulled back all funding.

"Do you know what happened?" He asked a cop, who told him that he was to move along. Frustrated and refusing to leave the scene, he found a reporter who knew what had happened.

"They said that Warren Worthington the second was stabbed twice and thrown through a window of his office." The reporter told him.

Warren looked up the building and saw the broken window that lead to his father's death. He felt himself growing even paler and sick than he already was. "Do you know where they took him?" He asked.

"Sherman Memorial Hospital." The reporter responded before Warren took off for a cab.

Rogue grumbled as she and Gambit boarded the Grey Hound bus to Chicago. She hated how people stared at her the entire way there and even when she entered the bus people watched her. She knew it was because of the white strands of her hair that identified her as a mutant.

She made it half way through the bus and picked to open seats. She threw her bag on the floor underneath her seat and realized it had turned to ice. 'Great, like Ah don't have enough problems.' She huffed and sat in her seat and looked out the window. Gambit sat down next to her.

"I thought these freaks were gone." A man in a suit muttered as he stood to move to another seat.

"What was dat, mon ami?" Gambit asked, his red eyes glaring at the man from underneath his sunglasses.

"I said why can't you freaks leave us normal people alone. Anytime there is disaster it is because of one of you. Can't you and your little girlfriend fly away or something?" The suited man said before entering the aisle.

"Don't have dat power, let's see if y' got it." Gambit replied before he kicked the other man in the legs, sending him forward. "Nope, y' don't either."

"Will you behave, you're gonna get us kicked off of here." Rogue told him and rolled her eyes.

"He started it." Gambit defended himself and watched as the man picked himself up and found a seat at the very front. They road on the bus for two hours. Rogue was lost in her thoughts of what she should do after she got the cure again. She wondered if it was something she would have to get constantly. She hoped that maybe they would eventually perfect it so her powers would never come back.

"Pick a card." Gambit had in his hand a pack of cards spread out in his hand.

"If Ah do, will ya disappear?" Rogue asked.

"Dis is boring sitting here in silence. Thought maybe we get to know each a bit. Anythin' lower than five y' ask a question, six and up, Ah ask." Gambit explained the game he made up.

"Fine." Rogue picked a card on the side. She didn't really care to play, but at least it would keep her mind occupied on something other than her future. She turned over the card and it revealed two of spades. "So Ah guess Ah'll go with the question Ah've been wonderin' about since the beginnin', why are ya followin' meh?" She asked.

Gambit sighed. He thought about making up a story or telling the truth. He figured it couldn't hurt if she knew the truth. "Y' remind me of my Belladonna." He replied.

"Belladonna? A girl of yours?" Rogue asked. 'Figures. Guy like this probably has a girl in each state. That is why he is followin' meh around.' She thought to herself.

"Oui, she was my fiancée." He answered with a sigh. He hated talking about Bella.

"So why aren't ya with her now?" Rogue asked.

"She's dead." The Cajun replied. Rogue's hand went to her mouth.

"Ah'm so sorry." She now felt bad for being mean to him earlier. "What happened? If ya don't mind meh askin'."

"Non, it happened when I was eighteen. We were to be married in a week. One night I came home and found her dead body in our bed. Whoever it was tore her to shreds, didn't even know if it was her at first. To make matters worse, whoever killed her put my fingerprints on her to make it look like I did it. Her poppa tried to kill me, but my father and brother stopped him. dey all came to an agreement dat I was to be exiled from New Orleans. If I step foot back in dere, I'm dead." He explained, leaving out that his family was a bunch of thieves and hers were assassins. 'Still never found de son of a bitch who did it.' He thought to himself.

"Oh mah god." Rogue whispered. She knew how he felt in the last part of the story. She herself was being exiled from the X-Men, leaving her friends and Logan behind. She didn't know when she would see them again. "Did ya love her?" She asked.

"Oui, more den anythin'. We were always together since we were kids." Gambit gave a small smile as he shuffled through the deck of cards and pulled out the Queen of Spades. "Dis was always her signature card."

"Why that card?" Rogue asked as he put the card back and shuffled the deck.

"Dat's de card dat suited her best. Let's see if we can find one dat suits y'." He said and drew the card from on top and handed it to her. She turned it over and looked at it.

"Queen of Hearts." She said as she looked at the card. She handed him the card to put back into the pile, but he told her to hang onto it.

"I believe it is my turn." Gambit told her and drew a card from the center of the deck and pulled out ten of diamonds. "My turn." He said before placing the card back into the deck. "Why are we goin' to Chicago?" He asked.

"Cause Ah gotta get that cure. Mah powers came back and they are worse than before. It's like they got a mind of their own and activate whenever they want to." She replied.

"So, why didn' y' talk to someone about it, dey all know." Gambit asked. Rogue smiled at him.

"Ah answered mah one question. Next card." She pulled a card and it was seven of hearts. 'Damnit.' She cursed to herself. "Ah did talk ta the Professor and he told meh that Ah couldn't be helped." She sighed. She had wondered if it was what Xavier or the entire school that had wanted her gone. She preferred not to know the answer, afraid of what it might be.

"Thought his school was to help mutants with dere powers?" Gambit shook his head. "I told Stormy dat place is no good."

"Okay next card." She told him. Gambit drew a card and it was three of clubs. "How do ya know Storm?" She asked.

"Oh me and Stormy go way back. We traveled together for a few months before she found her got her memories back. We've kept in contact since den. She wanted me to visit de mansion, but it wasn't my style. Lately, had nowhere else to go and decided to see what de place was like." Gambit answered with a grin. "Y'r card." Rogue drew a nine of spades. "Why y' with de Iceboy?"

"What?" Rogue looked at him in shock.

"Y' heard me. Why y' with de boy who got his eyes on de brown haired fille." She asked.

She opened her mouth to defend Bobby like she normally would, but then stopped. She remembered the hurtful words he had said about her trying to hurt him. He knew she couldn't control it and he still went behind her back and talked about her to the others. "Ah don't know." She sighed and pulled a loose strand of white hair behind her ear. "Ah guess it's cause he was nice ta meh when Ah first entered the school. He had seen what mah powers did and wasn't afraid like the other students. When we first were going out, we would kiss for a few seconds before mah powers kicked in. After our friend John left, he seemed like he didn't want anythin' ta do with meh. He said he did, but Ah always caught him with Kitty. Especially the one night." She paused for a moment and leaned her head on the window.

"Ah saw them ice skating together and holding hands. No gloves in between them, but bare hands. Ah blamed mahself for everythin'. He just wanted ta be normal and be with his girlfriend and not have ta think about how long it has been before he goes into a coma." A tear slide down her left cheek and she quickly wiped it away. "That is what happened to mah first boyfriend, David. He was over studying in mah room and we began kissin' that is when mah powers kicked in and sent him inta a coma. Bobby made meh think that Ah could try to move on and forgot about that, but after what happened recently, no one will even look at meh again." Rogue finished and looked over at Gambit. "Ah know, Ah'm pretty pathetic."

"Y' chere." Gambit raised his gloved hands to her chin. "Never."

Rogue smiled and him and wiped away another tear that escaped her eye. "Okay next card." Gambit nodded and drew four of clubs. "Do ya ever think about visitin' your family?" She asked.

Gambit sighed. He hadn't thought about his family in years. "Oui, if dey were alive. My pere died after my brother was killed. Even if I could, dere not many to visit Bella's pere, her bastard of a brother, dey all died." He replied. Rogue's eyes went wide.

"What happened?" She asked him.

He scratched his head and thought of something fast. There were things he could tell her that were true, however, others things should not be known. "Dey were at a meetin' and de place caught on fire. Dey were unable to escape." He answered.

"Ah'm sorry." She said and watched him shuffle the cards again. She was beginning to have a new image of him than she did before. She thought he was a jerk that was following her because he figured he could hook up with her because Bobby wasn't around. He seemed like he really did care about her.

"Dat's alright. It's been a while since den. Was able to sneak in dere and see de funerals." He said, wishing at the moment he was allowed to smoke on the bus. "Y' gonna go back to de mansion one day?" He asked.

"Ah don't know. Ah haven't really thought about it. Maybe visit Logan and some of the others." She responded. Gambit gave a disgusted look at the mention of the feral mutant.

"Why de Wolverine?" He asked with a hint of dislike in his voice. It did not go unnoticed by Rogue.

"He helped meh when Ah needed it and he was always there for meh. If it wasn't for him, Ah don't know where Ah would be. He's like a father tam eh." She answered, watching the Cajun's expression, but he placed his poker face. "Do ya know him?" Neither of them noticing the sides of the bus starting to bend inward.

'Know him better den y'.' Gambit thought before responding. "At de mansion was de first time I met him. Didn't like him."

"A lot of people say that when they first meet him, but he is a big softy." Rogue told him and turned to look out the window, missing the sparks coming out of Gambit's hand.

'My ass he is.' Gambit thought bitterly. He looked down and realized he was charging a card. He drew it back into him before it exploded.

"OH MY GOD!" A woman shouted as the inside of the bus went inward. Rogue looked in fear and tried to control the metal, but fire came out of her hands and raced across the seats of the bus, burning a few people who began panicking.

"Ah can't control it." She yelled and jumped from her seat and found herself levitating off the ground.

**End of Chapter 8**

Once again, I apologize. It's been a while so I am not really up to date with the accents. I already know my grammar terrible, I'm trying to find a beta reader.

Next Chapter: I'll get to Magneto, he was supposed to be in this chapter, but he annoys me so his part has to wait. And Rogue's powers still out of control. More Storm and Logan. And Psylocke finally arrives at the school.


	9. Past, Present, and Future

I am bad. I should be reading for school, but the book is so boring and this is so much more interesting. Now I got more to do tomorrow.

**Disclaimer:** Once again, I am only borrowing these characters. I do not own ANY of them!

* * *

Gambit got out of his seat as the bus came to a halt and people tried to escape. "It's not opening!" The bus driver yelled as he tried to pry the doors open that were sealed with ice.

"Rogue." Gambit called to her as the roof of the bus was ripped open. He knew it would only get worse if she kept panicking. "Y' got to try to calm down." He told her.

"Ah can't." She cried. She was terrified of what was happening to her. All of the powers from everyone she ever touched were going haywire. She could hear voices in her head crying to be released. "Make it stop."

Gambit looked around and noticed people had been able to escape, except for two individuals in the front and one in the back. "Get off de bus." He yelled at them. He knew it would only get worse if Rogue accidently killed one of them.

The man in the back made his way toward Gambit and Rogue. "I think I can help." He told Gambit and approached Rogue, but Gambit grabbed him by the arm.

"Don't go near her." The Cajun warned. He opened his mouth to say something when the sides of the bus turned to liquid. He looked back at Rogue and found her on her knees. He let go of the other man and approached her. "Rogue." He said, trying to get her attention. He tried to use his empathy to calm her down, but it seemed to not be working.

"NO! Stop." Rogue cried and closed her eyes. Inside her head she could hear Bobby, John, and the others circling around her and telling her what a disgrace she had been. She heard Logan saying he wished he had left her on the side of the road. Heard Emma and Monet making fun of her.

The other man moved forward before Gambit could protest and placed his bare hand on the back of Rogue's neck. Suddenly, all the voices vanished. The pieces of metal debris fell.

"What happened?" Rogue asked looking at the other man. Gambit sighed in relief. At least things didn't get as bad as they could have.

"I am guessing your powers went out of control. My powers cancel out other mutant's powers." The man explained and helped her to her feet. She had finally got a good look at her rescuer. He looked like Mr. Worthington, except younger. He wore blue jeans and a red shirt that was mostly covered by a blue jacket.

"Thank you." Rogue smiled at him. Even after he removed his hand from her neck, her powers didn't kick in.

"Please, the pleasure was all mine." He smiled back at her. Gambit watched the two introduce themselves. It was good to see Rogue was now calm. He knew the longer she stayed that way her powers wouldn't go nuts again. However, the new guy was hard to read.

"My name is Augustus, also known as Pulse." The blonde introduced himself.

"Mah name is Rogue." She replied. She had decided a while ago not to tell people what her real name was. She wanted it to be only those she really trusted. So far, it was only Logan, Professor Xavier, Bobby, and Jubilee. They swore they wouldn't tell anyone. As of the moment, she was only able to really trust two of them.

"Beautiful name for such a beautiful lady." Pulse told her and kissed her hand.

'Dat boy just stole one of my lines.' Gambit thought as he glared at Pulse, already disliking him. "We gonna get goin'?" Remy asked, disrupting them.

Rogue nodded. "Yeah, we're goin' to Chicago." She told Pulse.

"Really, I am heading there too to see family. Maybe I could join you?" He asked.

'Hell no. Y' better say no, chere.' Gambit thought to himself.

"Yeah, that would be great." She told him. Gambit grumbled and headed for the back door of the broken bus. "So, why were ya in New York?" She asked Pulse as they followed Gambit.

"Please don't think less of me, but I am a thief and had a job to do." Augustus replied. Gambit jumped down from the bus and glared at the new guy. He even had the same job.

'I am so suein' whoever cloned me.' Gambit thought to himself before he helped Rogue down. Pulse jumped down after her.

"And you are?" Pulse asked the other man.

"Gambit." Remy told him and followed Rogue. They would have to find a hotel and stay there for the night and try traveling again in the morning.

Pulse scratched his head. 'How come they didn't give me their real names? Is there something I don't know about.' He thought to himself before following his new comrades.

**Sherman Memorial Hospital**

Warren was led down to the morgue by a nurse's assistant. They had allowed him to view the body for ten minutes before they started the autopsy. He went through another door and into a freezing room. Tables were lined up on the sides of the room. "This is him." The assistant told him, looking at the information to make sure it was correct.

A sheet covered Warren Worthington Sr.'s body. "Thank you." Angel said and approached the table. A part of him wanted to pull down the sheet and see his father's face one last time. He decided against it. It was better to remember his father the way he was alive.

"This is my fault. I should have come sooner. Who knows maybe you would still be alive." Warren spoke to his deceased father. He didn't care of the nurse assistant was still there or anyone else. He needed to talk to his dad.

"I guess we will never know now. The reason I wanted to visit you was so we could reconnect. Ever since I was little and you found out about my wings, you wanted to change me. It was only after what happened at Alcatraz Island you seemed to stop trying to change me. You finally accepted who I am and now I lost you before we could restart." Warren broke down into tears he had been holding back.

He wiped his tears away and tried to calm down. "I just want you to know I forgive you for all those years we lost and hope you will forgive me for not being there the weeks we could have had." Warren wiped his eyes one last time. He knew he had to leave before he broke down.

"Goodbye, daddy."

**X-Mansion**

Logan shifted back in forth in his bed. He was having one of the many nightmares he has had before. This time it seemed different. There were no scientists

_Logan was walking through a hallway of a hotel. People passed by him as if he didn't exist. He made it to the elevator and waited for it to come. "Are you staying here, too?" A female voice asked him. He turned and saw the lady next to him. She looked just like Jean, except for the black hair._

"_No, just here on business." He told her and the doors opened. He got on and the lady followed, along with another man who went to the back. The man held a gun in each hand, but for some reason it was a concern to Logan. "What are ya here for?" He asked, turning his attention back to the lady._

"_Oh, I am waiting my boyfriend to come back." She told him. "It's been a few years." Logan looked at her again and noticed slash marks forming on her face and blood began to appear through her clothes. She smiled at him before falling dead. _

"_Tragedy isn't it." The man behind said before walking forward and exiting the elevator. Logan didn't pay attention to him. He bent down next to the woman and felt she had no pulse. People began to enter the elevator, not even noticing the dead woman. _

_Logan slowly began to stand up and noticed she disappeared. 'What the hell.' He thought to himself and backed away. He turned around and found himself in a casino. He noticed a few people staring at him. One in particular was a little boy who sat at a table by himself. Logan went up to him and asked. "Where are your parents?" _

"_You should know." The little boy said before he got up and ran into a crowd of people and disappeared. _

"_Are you going to sit down or stand there all day?" A familiar voice nagged at him. Logan felt himself grow cold as he turned to a poker table and found the man that haunted him at night: William Stryker._

"_What the hell are you doing here?" Logan snarled and tried to unleash his claws, only to find nothing happened. "You dead."_

"_Your right I am, but it is you that keeps me alive. Your memory won't let me go." Stryker told him. Logan sat down at the table. The dealer distributed cards to each person at the table, but as far as he was concerned, there were only two. _

"_What do ya mean?" He snarled._

"_You are trying to remember your past. Most of the time, it is the same memory that keeps coming up. I am sure you know what that is." Stryker laughed. Logan growled, even in his dreams this man taunted him. "You came to me for help." _

"_Why?" Logan asked. Stryker only shook his head and disappeared. Logan stood up from the table and looked around. He was so close to finding out more about himself._

"_Because y' were too weak to deal with him y'rself." He heard the dealer say. He turned back and found Gambit sitting with a black tip hat on that hid his eyes and three women hanging around him, one massing his shoulders. He looked exactly the same as he did when he saw the Cajun the other day._

"_Who?" He asked. He heard a growl behind him and then felt claws dig into his shoulders and pull him backwards. _

"AHH!" Logan shouted as he bolted up in bed. He had sweat running down his face and looked around to find himself in his room. 'What the hell was that?' He thought to himself.

He heard footstep in the hallway racing down and knocking at his door. "Logan? Are you alright?" Ororo called through the door. Everyone had been told to knock on his door after the incident where he accidently stabbed Rogue.

"Yeah, I am fine." He told her. She opened the door, dressed in a white robe. "Just a nightmare. Nothin' important."

"It must have been to startle you." She told him and moved to sit next to him on his bed. "Do you want to talk about it?" She asked.

"No, I am sure it was nothin'. It just seemed different than the others." He told her. "Normally I dream about how I got these." He held up his hand, indicating the metal skeleton. "But this was before I got it."

"Maybe you are starting to remember who you were." Ororo suggested to him.

"Yeah, maybe." He muttered. He had always wanted to know who he was before he lost his memory, but now he was wondering if he really wanted to.

Next Day

Kitty knocked on Professor Xavier's office door. Lately, none of the students saw him out of the office. The only time he left was to go to Cerebro. He refused to eat with the students or the teachers. He had canceled all his sessions with the students and pushed them on to Logan, Ororo, Hank, and Warren. He also refused to speak with any of the students.

The students were told that Xavier was recovering from his ordeal and needed some time to himself. Within a few weeks he would be ready to teach again. Kitty knew she should probably go to Hank about what Jono had said the day before, but she figured that Xavier would want to know this.

She didn't get an answer. She tried again and got no reply. 'Maybe he is out.' She thought to herself. She cracked open the door and peaked inside. She looked at the desk and found him not there. She gazed around the room and found the Professor in front of the window.

"What do you want?" Xavier spoke. There was no emotion in his voice.

"I'm sorry." Kitty apologized. She stepped into the room and closed the door. "We discovered something you should know."

"You were told to talk to one of the teachers before coming to me. Mr. McCoy is still in the building, why didn't you go to him?" Xavier asked, not bothering to turn around and face her.

The brown hair girl felt uneasy and began regretting not going to Hank first. Professor Xavier made her feel this way. "Th-this is really important." She stuttered. "One of the new students told us that the Weapon X facility is still open." She told him. She could feel her heart racing in her chest and her cheeks burning up. She wanted to leave.

"That is not my problem, nor is it a concern to the X-Men." Xavier informed her.

Kitty stared at the back of Xavier. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. The man that had spent nearly his whole life trying to help mutants was turning his back on them. He knew how dangerous Weapon X had been. "But what about all the mutants? Jono said that there were lots of mutants that had been captured and experimented on." She told him.

"That is unfortunate for them. Maybe they will be lucky like Mr. Starsmore and be able to escape. I am not going to send the X-Men out on a hopeless case." He told her.

"Okay." She whispered, seeing as how she was not going to convince him. Maybe if she talked to Logan and Ororo they would be able to help. She knew Logan would in a heartbeat.

"Oh, and Miss. Pryde." Xavier called to her. She turned around to see what he had to say. "You have detention for a month for disturbing me. You may leave now."

Kitty's mouth fell open in shock. She got detention for informing him that mutants were in danger and they should help them. 'This is so messed up.' She thought to herself. She closed the door and headed down the hallway. "Professor Xavier is a douche bag."

**Magneto's Base**

He woke up an hour ago with a cloth tied around his face. He had the urge to take it off, but a part of him told him to keep it on and to keep his eyes closed. A woman came in twenty minutes ago to give him some food and said that someone would be in to talk with him. Since then, he sat on the edge of a bed and waited.

He was unable to remember who he was, where, or how he got here. There was only one memory burned into his head. It was of a beautiful red haired woman with green eyes smiling at him. They leaned in to kiss and she wrapped her arms around his neck. He knew this was the happiest he had been for a long time. He knew she had to be someone important, but didn't know why.

"It is good to see you up. I was becoming very worried." Magneto said as he entered the room. Scott's head moved in the direction of the voice. It sounded familiar.

"Do I know you?" Scott asked. Magneto smiled. This was going to be so easy.

"My name is Magneto. I have known you your whole life." Magneto told him.

"What happened to me? Why can't I remember anything?" Scott asked.

"Yes, my friend. I am sorry to tell you that you suffered from a serious accident." Magneto informed him. He sat down next to the young man on the bed. "You see, we were protecting some people when an enemy of ours came along and tried to stop us. They made it their sole mission to harm people. They call themselves the X-Men. I have been at war with them for many years. You joined my cause along with the rest of our Brotherhood. During our last fight, you hit your head. We were lucky to get to you before the X-Men got their hands on you." Magneto lied.

Scott nodded. It seemed to make sense. There was one thing he needed to know. "Is there a red haired woman in our group?" He asked curiously.

Magneto looked surprised. He didn't think that Scott would remember Jean. "Yes, she was also a part of our group. Her name was Jean Grey. She was killed by the X-Men Wolverine. She was your wife." Magneto told him. He knew the other man would fall more under his spell if he told him. What man wouldn't go nuts knowing his wife had been murdered.

Scott didn't say anything. He only clenched his fist. 'How dare he.' He thought bitterly about this Wolverine person. Whoever he was, he was going to pay.

"I am sorry to be the one to tell you." Magneto said and placed a comforting hand on the younger man's shoulder. "I promise we will do everything we can to make sure she is avenged. We will make sure the X-Men are no more and go on to help other mutants." Magneto vowed.

"Mutants?" Scott asked.

"Ah, yes. You are a mutant as am I. We are a superior race of beings. Each of us is unique. I am able to control metal. You are able to emit beams of energy through your eyes. Homo sapiens have been jealous of our talents and have wanted us dead for years. We protect all mutants from them. The X-Men are a group of mutants as well, but they favor the Homo sapiens over their own race." Magneto informed him.

'That explains why I won't open my eyes.' He thought to himself. "Is there a way I can control my powers?" Scott asked. Magneto turned and held out his hand. A visor floated through the air and into his hand.

"Yes, I made this for you. It allows you to open your eyes and control the velocity of the beams." Magneto told him and handed the visor to Scott.

Scott pulled off the cloth, keeping his eyes closed, and placed the visor around his head. He opened his eyes and looked around the small hospital room and then to the old man sitting next to him.

"There is an important decision for you to make. Due to your injury, I was wondering if you were thinking of resigning from the Brotherhood. I would not be disappointed. I only want what's best for you." Magneto continued to lie. "We will still continue our fight against the X-Men. When you have decided, you will find me in my office. One of the others will point you to it." Magneto moved away from the bed and to the door.

Scott only had one thing on his mind and it wasn't about the Brotherhood, X-Men, or any other group. It was on Jean. He wished he could remember more of his time with her. "I already made me decision." Scott said to Magneto and stood up from the bed, holding onto the rail until he got his balance. It had been a while since he had been on his legs. "I will stay with the Brotherhood."

Magneto turned his attention back to the younger man. "That is wonderful news." Magneto smiled at Scott. "I promise you, we will do wonders for this world. No one will harm us. We will do what has never been done before. We will bring peace to this world." The elder man now stood in front of the other man. "Welcome to the Brotherhood, Cyclops."

**End of Chapter 9**

Special Thanks to: **tfobmv18, firefly4543, Wanda W, and 1moonwitch. **Thank you so much for taking time to review and tell me what you think of the story so far. I promise all your questions will eventually be answered in the chapters to come.

Next Chapter: Psylocke FINALLY comes to the mansion; I know it's taken her forever to get there. Some more stuff with Magneto, some backstabbers, and Pulse and Gambit get to have some quality time with each other.


	10. Really Bad Paper Cut

Important: For Rogue and Logan, each X-Men movie is a year they stayed at the mansion. So they have been there for 3 years, this fic takes place right after it. I just wanted to clarify that.

Disclaimer: I do NOT own any of the characters in this story, they are owned by Marvel.

* * *

Rogue sat in the passenger seat of a 2003 Honda Civic that had been 'borrowed.' The three of them had decided it would be best to travel by car to avoid being with crowds of people. This way, if Rogue's powers acted up, they would not be endangering other people's lives. Augustus was driving and Gambit was shoved into the back. Every once in a while Pulse would glare into the back seat and Gambit would flip him off.

The two of them did not get off to a good start. The night before they stayed in a hotel and that is where the fighting began.

**Night Before**

Rogue, Remy, and Augustus walked into the lobby of a Holiday Inn. There were quite a few people due to the fact it was nine at night and travelers decided to take some much needed rest. "Don't worry, the bill is on me." Augustus told his two companions.

"Are ya sure? Ah brought money with meh. At least let meh pay for half." Rogue offered to him. He shook his head and told her that he didn't mind.

Remy went up to the counter to a young girl behind the counter. "Bonjour, chere." He gave his best smile, causing the eighteen year old girl to blush. "Is y'r best room available?" She quickly hid behind the computer and started typing. Meanwhile, at the other counter Augustus was making room reservations. He went to pull out his wallet from his back pocket and found it missing.

"Where the hell is my wallet?" He yelled angrily and started searching his pockets and his bags.

"We have a room with two double beds. Do want a whirlpool tub?" The clerk asked Remy, her face was red from blushing.

"Would y' recommend it?" Remy asked her.

Rogue glared at him. 'Ah take it back, he is how Ah thought he was. Stinkin' swamp rat.' She thought. She glanced over at Pulse who was looking frantically for his wallet. He was on his hands and knees searching the floors of the lobby. "Ah should have just gone alone." She sighed.

"This normally would be two hundred dollars, but I was able to give you my discount. It comes down to one hundred and seventy-five." The clerk told Remy. "I just need you to fill out this information and see some ID and credit card."

"Of course, petite." He nodded and pulled out his wallet. He glanced over at Pulse who was asking people if they had seen a wallet. 'Dat is sad.' He thought. He filled out the information requested and received the keys to the room.

"Hope you enjoy your stay, Mr. Lord. If you need anything, I'll be here all night. I mean, you can call the front desk and we will try to help you." The girl told him and handed back his ID and credit card. He took her hand and kissed it.

"Merci." He gave her one last wink and turned to Rogue and Pulse. "Y' ready to go?" He asked them.

"Yeah, but Ah think Augustus might be sleepin' down here." Rogue looked over at her new friend. "Why don't we get some sleep and then we'll report it stolen in the mornin'?" She suggested to the blonde.

"I don't believe I will be able to do that. As I have told you I am a thief. The police most likely have reports about me and will arrest me on sight. I suppose I can get my money some other way." He sighed.

"Well, whenever ya decide ta join us, we're in room 334." Rogue told him and carried her bag to the elevator. She pushed the button and waited. "Ya comin', Cajun?" She turned and asked him.

"Right behind y, chere."Remy said and then walked over to Pulse and put an arm around him. "Y' might be a thief." He said and pulled Pulse's wallet from his coat pocket and handed it to him. "But I be de Prince of Thieves." He told him and walked off to join Rogue.

Augustus stared down at his wallet and then glared at the Cajun mutant. The elevator door opened and Rogue and Gambit got on. "You rotten Son of a-" the elevator door closed.

They reached the room and dropped their bags on the bed. It was a decent size room for the night. There were two queen size beds with a nightstand between them. There was a small table that seated four people and a vanity next to the closet and the bathroom. The walls were white with a picture hovering over each bed.

"I'm gonna go take a bath." Rogue told Remy and unpacked a pair of sweat pants and t-shirt.

"Need any help?" Remy asked her. Rogue rolled her eyes at him.

"In your dreams, swamp rat." She said before closing the door. Remy sat on the bed and turned the TV on and flipped through some of the channels when there was a knock at the door. He sighed, knowing who it was, and went to answer the door.

"Sorry, we didn't order no room service." Remy told Pulse, who pushed the door open and walked pass the Cajun.

"Very funny." Pulse muttered and dropped his bag on the table. "Where's Rogue?" He asked, noticing the she was not there.

"De femme is in de shower." Remy answered and pulled out a pack of cards and began shuffling them. It was a habit he did when he wasn't allowed to smoke. After a while he began to play solitaire.

"So, what are your powers?" Pulse asked him, trying to make conversation.

"How do y' know I got any?" Remy asked as he moved a two of hearts over a three of spades.

"Well for one, your eyes are a dead giveaway." Pulse told him.

"I throw cards." Remy told him and picked up another card and moved it to another play. Pulse didn't look impressed. 'Non of y'r business what my powers are, homme.' He thought to himself.

"Playing cards? What good does that do? Do you go around giving people paper cuts?" Pulse laughed to himself, ignoring the look Gambit was giving him. Remy chuckled and picked up a card and twiddled it around in his fingers.

"Believe moi, it's a very bad paper cut." He smirked with his eyes glowing red.

Rogue was enjoying her bath. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so relaxed. Soon, she would be free of her powers and not have to worry about harming anyone. She would be free of this life. Still, she felt a little guilty for not telling Jubilee or Logan where she was going.

She let the water out of the tub and dried off. She looked into the mirror as she finished dressing. 'I'm not gonna let people walk over meh anymore.' She thought to herself. Previously, she had always let people decide what she was to do. Her parents, David, Bobby, and everyone. She was sick of it. She wanted to be more independent and not so helpless.

"OW!" She heard a scream from the other room. She threw the wet towel over the shower rail and went to find out what was going on. She found was Pulse holding his bleeding forehead.

"What happened?" She asked as she rushed over to his side. She found Gambit on the bed holding playing cards in his hand.

"He didn't think cards could be weapons. Just provin' him wrong." Remy told her. Rogue shook her head and grabbed a towel to put over Pulse's head.

"Ya gonna be okay?" Rogue asked him. He nodded yes and glared at Gambit.

"That was a dirty trick." He snarled at the Cajun.

"Consider y'rself lucky, homme. I used to use knives." He told him.

"Ya guys are grown men. Can't ya get along for twenty minutes?" Rogue glared at both of them.

"He started it!" Both of them yelled at each other.

**X-Mansion**

Kitty walked down the hallway to the kitchen knowing the others would be having breakfast. Sure enough, Jubilee, Piotr, Lorna, Bobby, and Jono were sitting at the table. "Morning Kitty." Piotr greeted her.

"You guys are not going to believe this. I just went to talk to the Professor about that Weapon X stuff and he gave me detention!" She yelled. Bobby dropped his spoon back in his cereal and Lorna's mouth dropped open.

"Why did he do that?" Bobby asked. In all the years he had been at the mansion, he had never received detention for talking to Xavier. Turning the basketball court into an ice skating rink and destroying Miss. Monroe's garden, which he got detention for.

"He said something about me disturbing him. He was sitting in his office looking out the window. He wasn't doing anything." Kitty complained and sat down next to Jubilee, who looked depressed.

"That is not the only problem." Jubilee told the brown haired girl. She had been quiet all morning and it was very unlike her. "Rogue didn't come home last night. I am worried about her."

"Maybe she went to visit her parents?" Lorna suggested. The others shook their heads. They knew Rogue was not welcome back in her home town after what happened with her first boyfriend.

"Did she leave a note?" Kitty asked. Jubilee shook her head. She had been up until two in the morning waiting for her friend to come in. Normally, Rogue was in their room before anyone else.

"No. There was no note. She left her cell phone here and half of her clothes are missing. I think she ran away." Jubilee told the group.

"This is my fault. I shouldn't have said those things to her." Bobby said. He knew he should have apologized to Rogue before anything like this had happened. Truth was, he was beginning to get scared of her. When she had only the absorbing powers he could deal with it. All he had to do was be careful around her skin, but with other powers developing and out of control he didn't think he could take that.

"Yes, it is." Jubilee snapped at him. "You didn't see any of us calling her dangerous in front of her. I swear you don't care about anybody, but yourself." She yelled. Bobby stood up and was about to defend himself when Piotr stopped him.

"I don't think she ran away." Piotr told them and grabbed Bobby by the arm and pulled him back into his seat. The last thing they needed was a fight. "I knocked on Gambit's door and found it open. He is gone too. He must be with her."

"You don't know that for certain. He's not a student here and might have gone out for the night. We need to talk to the others and tell them." Jubilee insisted.

"Rogue is not a little girl. She is twenty years old. This is not the first time she has left. She knows how to take care of herself. If she wanted to be found she would have left a note." Kitty said to the black haired girl. "Besides, we have other things that are going on that need to be dealt with." She told the group.

Jubilee stood up from her seat, glaring at Kitty. "How can you be so heartless? Oh yeah, that's right. You don't give a damn about her because you've spent all this time since your arrival trying to steal her boyfriend." She shouted.

"I did no such thing! Rogue is my friend too, but unlike you, I respect her wishes!" Kitty yelled back.

"Don't give me that crap. Rogue told me all about how you and Bobby went ice skating and were holding hands and laughing." Jubilee argued, missing the hurt look on Piotr face. "You've been after him from the beginning and he is stupid enough to fall for it."

"We went ice skating because we are friends. That is what friends do!" Bobby joined in on the argument. "I never cheated on Rogue. I've never laid eyes on another girl since I met her. I am allowed to be around my friends."

"That's why you were spending all your time with your buddies instead of your girlfriend? You excluded her. She felt like an outcast. She told me what the other kids around here say about her. She needed support and you weren't there for her when she needed it." Jubilee screamed at them. Kitty rolled her eyes.

"You know what, I am done with this. You can argue all you want about why Rogue is gone, but I'm through." Kitty told them and got up from the table to leave. "And don't ever talk to me again." She added to both Jubilee and Bobby.

"Believe me, it's not a problem. I wouldn't want you stealing my boyfriend." Jubilee snarled before exiting the other way.

Bobby picked up his forgotten bowl of cereal and threw it in the sink before leaving for his room. The only people that remained in the kitchen were Piotr, Lorna and Jono. "Um, what was that?" Lorna asked. They had all seemed like very close friends and then the next minute they were at each other's throats.

_I think we have a problem._ Jono said. _We should probably go talk to them._

"Good idea." Lorna agreed. She looked over at Piotr, who remained quiet. "Are you alright?" She asked.

He nodded yes, but he really wasn't. He had a crush on Kitty since she had arrived at the mansion. He never really thought of the idea of Bobby and Kitty hooking up until just now. 'Was she telling the truth when she said Bobby and she were friends, or were they more?' He thought to himself.

**Magneto's Hideout**

"You called us boss?" Avalanche, one of Magneto's new members of the Brotherhood asked. He had joined a few days ago along with Blob. The other members were gathered in Magneto's office, except for Cyclops.

"Yes, I have very important matters to discuss with all of you." Magneto told them. "As you all know, we apprehended Cyclops and he has decided to join us. He has no memory of what happened before and none of you are to give it away. Do I make myself clear?" He instructed his group of mutants.

"Yes, sir." The group answered. Mystique only nodded, but never answered. She was very bitter with Magneto over him leaving her when she had become 'cured.'

"We also need more members. As many of you know, each time we set our plans in motion, the X-Men are always there to stop and defeat us. This cannot happen. There are some mutants I know of that will join us and some that may need convincing." Magneto told them and a large metal screen came up on the back wall.

"The first is Toad. He was once a member, but due to the X-Men he was electrocuted and thrown into a lake. It has taken him time to recover, but he will join us." Magneto informed them and switched to the next mutant.

"Her name is Revanche" A woman with purple hair came on the screen. "She might need some convincing, but it shouldn't be too hard." Magneto said and switched to the next photo. Pyro almost dropped his lighter at the photo of a face he once called a friend.

"And finally, Rogue. She is extremely powerful. She, as many of you know, is an X-Man. It may take time to convince her to join us, but it will be well worth it. With her powers, it will make us unstoppable." Magneto told the group.

"I doubt she will join us. Not with Bobby and Wolverine there." Pyro told his boss.

"We will not have to worry, I have sent a man to retrieve her and gain her trust. It will make the transition much easier." Magneto said to the younger mutant. He went over a few more things before dismissing the Brotherhood.

Pyro and Mystique were the first to leave. "John, come here." Mystique grabbed him. "I need to talk to you." She dragged him to her room and shut the door and locked it. "What do you think of Magneto's plan?" She asked.

"It's going to fail, like all the rest of his plans." Pyro told her as if it was obvious. So far, everything Magneto came up with failed.

"Exactly, that is why I think the Brotherhood needs a new leader. One that will succeed." Mystique told him and walked over to her dresser.

"Your planning on getting rid of him?" John asked her.

"Would you miss him?" Mystique asked pulling out a large book and placing it on her bed.

"He may have rescued me from the X-Men, but I don't owe him anything. All he thinks of me is a lackey. Just like the rest." Pyro snarled. Mystique smiled and opened the book.

"There will be some changes coming in the future, mainly with him." Mystique told him and he got closer to look at the book. She turned a page and there was a picture of Magneto disappearing.

"What is this?" He asked.

"A very dear friend of mine gave this to me. It is her diary of what is to come. It is to prepare us for when the day arrives. It is the only reason why I came back. If I knew that old bastard was going to get his I would have killed him myself. All we have to do is wait for the day to arrive." Mystique laughed.

**X-Mansion**

Elizabeth Braddock aka Psylocke stepped out of her car and looked at the huge mansion in front of her. She was in her mid twenties, stood five foot seven, shoulder length blond hair with blue eyes. She had arrived at the same time as two other students, Wanda and Pietro Maximoff. All three knocked on the door and no one answered.

"What no welcome party?" Pietro asked. Wanda grew agitated.

"They know we are supposed to be coming." She growled.

"When I talked to Hank McCoy on the phone he said that they had been very busy lately, but someone would be here to greet us and show us around." Betsy told the younger mutants. She turned the knob on the door and found it open. "Not very high on security I see."

They entered the mansion and found a few students wondering around. **Soon I will be complete**. Psylocke heard in her head. She scanned through some of the minds, but was unable to find the source. 'That was not human.' She thought to herself.

"Excuse me." Wanda said, getting the attention of Sage. "We just arrived, now where do we go?" She asked.

"Normally, you would meet with Professor Xavier, but lately, he has been busy. I will show you where your rooms are and then let one of the students show you around." She told the three.

"What kind of crap is this? I came here to get help with my powers and this Xavier guy decided he is too busy?" Wanda growled and the mansion began to shake.

"Wanda, calm down. I am sure they will help us." Pietro tried to reassure his twin sister. He knew if he didn't, the entire building was going to come down.

"The other teachers here help with powers also. There are danger room sessions at seven in the morning and another at eleven with Logan." Sage informed them and brought them to their rooms.

**End of Chapter 10**

Next week is hell week aka every teacher is giving a test, so I unfortunately may not be able to update. At the latest, next update will be February 7th.

Thank you so much to: **FluidDegree, firely4543, ola, tfobmv18, Wanda W, and 1moonwitch**. I appreciate you guys for taking the time to tell me what you think so far. As for Xavier, the reason why he is acting the way he is will be answered in a few chapters. As a hint, I am using a mix idea from the comics and X-Men The Last Stand.

**Next Chapter:** Instead of giving a few details of the next chapter, I've decided to give a small preview of what is to come

"_We had a deal and you better keep your end of the bargain." The man on the other line of the phone snarled._

"_Don't worry, just a little side tracked. It will be done by de end of de week." Gambit told the man._

"_That is not good enough, Gambit. You have three days to do your job or I am sending someone else." The man said before hanging up. Gambit clicked his phone shut and threw it against the wall. He knew he shouldn't have made this deal._


	11. Misplaced Truth

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this fic, if I did, I would NOT keep killing Gambit, and yes they killed him again in another universe. Also, I'd never let Austin, Milligan, and Carey, and other terrible writers out there to write a comic ever!!! This is why I started reading DC comics until they start being nice to the Cajun. That's the end of my rant.**

**X-Mansion**

Kitty sat on the couch in the recreation room watching the other students talk with their friends. She knew she was a little harsh with Jubilee, but she knew Rogue would not endanger herself on purpose. Her friend just needed some time away from the mansion with everything that has happened recently. 'Especially with her powers going haywire, that would scare the heck out of me.' She thought to herself as she remembered the danger room session.

Rogue had lost control of powers no one knew she had and almost injured Bobby. After, Logan went to help Rogue and the others were told to leave as she was escorted to Xavier's office. 'Oh my god.' She froze. 'What if Xavier was a jerk to her like he was to me?' She thought to herself. It was possible with Xavier's behavior lately.

"Aw, look at the lonely little kitty sitting by herself." She heard a female voice say tauntingly. Kitty rolled her eyes as Emma Frost, Monet, and some of their other friends.

"Didn't Logan tell you to put clothes on?" Kitty asked before getting up from her seat. She knew Emma was going to start something and didn't feel like fighting with the telepath.

"That animal has no idea what fashion is. I am going to be so happy when I leave this awful place. I won't have to put up with children like you." Emma laughed. "Speaking of children, I heard that the freak ran away from here. Can't she decide if she is going to be a mutant or not?"

"Can't you decide not to be a bitch for a day or is that too hard for you?" Kitty shot back at her.

"Emma is right." Monet defended her friend. "Rogue does not belong here or anywhere. She is a traitor to mutants and is too dangerous to be one of us. The farther away from us she is the better. I don't want that vampire anywhere near me." She finished before Kitty slapped her.

"What is going on here?" Ororo interrupted the teens, who glared at each other.

"This little brat just slapped M." Emma growled.

"They started it." Kitty shot back.

"I don't care who started it, I am endin' it. Kitty go to your room, I'll talk to ya later." Logan ordered the brunette girl. Emma gave a snide smirk as she watched the other girl retreat. "And you, Frost, I thought I told ya not ta start anythin' and not ta be walkin' around like that."

Emma rolled her eyes. "I don't have to listen to you. I will be out of this worthless school in two days. A friend of mine, Sebastian Shaw, as invited me to his club to teach me how to use my powers. Something I would suggest to everyone since this school is such a joke. We have animals teaching us, the headmaster can't even show his bald face, and-"

"That is enough, Emma." Ororo interrupted the blonde. "If you do not like living here, you may leave. You will not, and I repeat, will not insult the staff or students in his facility." Emma glared at the white haired woman.

"I gotta better idea for ya, ya can leave now." Logan told her. Emma huffed and stormed out to pack her bags with her friends following her. "Well, that is one problem, but we still got others." He says turning to Ororo.

"Why do they do that?" Ororo asked, shaking her head. Logan said nothing, but stared at the retreating student.

_Logan was sitting on the ground in the woods at night with a fire lit before him. He looks to his right and see a pair of glowing red eyes looking at him._

"_Why did you do dat?"_ A voice asked. _Logan looked over at the figure standing in the darkness of the woods Logan grabbed a stick sitting next to him and poked the fire. _

"_It is the only solution I had. I couldn't beat him before." Logan answered and then raised his other hand and unsheathed his metal claws. "But this will make sure he dies." _

"Logan?" Ororo asked and waved a hand in front of his face. He shook his head and looked at her confused. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" He said, acting as if nothing had happened.

"You kind of dosed off right there." She told him. 'He is hiding something from me.' She wanted to ask him what was troubling him, but she knew he wouldn't tell her.

"I'm fine, darling." Logan replied. Ororo stared at him, not believing him for a second. "I'm gonna go talk ta Kitty and see how Rogue's doin'. Haven't seen much of her since her powers went off." Logan told her. He planned on doing those things, but also meet with the Cajun who keeps on popping in his memories.

* * *

They stopped again for the night at a hotel in Ohio. Gambit had gone outside for a cigarette break, while Rogue and Pulse sat on the bed. "Ah don't understand why Ah'm doin' this." Rogue grumbled as she held her hand out to the quarter lying on the table across from the bed.

"This is a safety measure in case the cure fails again. You were unable to control your powers when they came back, but next time you might have some warning and some control." Pulse responded to her. He watched the quarter rise into the air and twirl around. "See you got it." He smiled at her.

Rogue lowered her hand and the quarter stayed in the air and then began to melt. "Ah didn't want ta do that." She sighed before the floor started on fire. Pulse grabbed her hand and the fire went out immediately.

"It's alright. This takes practice. You're not going to learn these powers in one day." Pulse encouraged her. Rogue smiled and him and wrapped her arms around him in a hug.

"Thank you so much." She told him.

"It is my pleasure." He responded and ran his fingers through her hair. 'I won't let anything happen to you.' He thought to himself. Rogue looked up at him.

"Ah heard ya in mah mind right now." She told him.

"Did you touch a telepath before?" Augustus asked her. Rogue sat there thinking about it and then it hit her.

"Emma brushed her arm against mine one day. That must be it." She whispered to herself.

"Well, there is no hiding secrets from you, is there." Pulse smiled at her. He was going to wrap his arm around her and then pulled back. "I shouldn't be getting this close to you. I am sure your boyfriend wouldn't like it. I know he already doesn't like me." Augustus said before scooting away from her.

"Who, Gambit?" Rogue asked him. They didn't hear the door crack up. "He ain't mah boyfriend. He's just a friend, nothin' else." She told him. Pulse smiled and took her bare hand into his and held it.

'You deserve someone who cares about you and will be there for you.' Pulse thought to himself and let Rogue read his mind. Rogue smiled and kissed his cheek.

Gambit felt his insides melt and he didn't know why. He didn't think of Rogue in that sort of way. For her to say they are only friends he knew he should be happy, but it only made him feel empty. He was about to step inside when he felt his phone vibrate. He closed the door behind him and walked down the hall and looked down at the device. 'Merde' He thought to himself. 'Not now.' He cursed before answering.

"Oui, what do y' want?" Gambit growled into the phone, knowing who was on the other line.

"So, you are alive. I was wondering what had happened to you. It's been a while since you contacted me." The voice on the other line said.

"Just give moi a bit more time. I've run into a few things dat I need to take care of." Gambit replied back to the voice.

"We had a deal and you better keep your end of the bargain." The man on the other line of the phone snarled.

"Don't worry, just a little side tracked. It will be done by de end of de week." Gambit told the man.

"That is not good enough, Gambit. You have three days to do your job or I am sending someone else." The man said before hanging up. Gambit clicked his phone shut and threw it against the wall. He knew he shouldn't have made this deal. It was bad enough that man, if you could call him that, gave him the creeps.

'I should be getting back to de room.' He thought to himself. He was about to turn the knob when he heard Rogue laughing through the door. He ran a hand through his hair and shook his head. 'Dat girl is never goin' to forgive moi for what I have to do.' He sighed and opened the door to find Rogue looking through her bag and Pulse lying on the bed watching TV.

"Hey Gambit." Rogue said to him.

"Evenin', chere." Remy replied and smiled down at her. Rogue tried to read his thoughts, but found nothing.

"Ah don't get it. It ain't workin' now." Rogue said frustrated.

"What?" Remy asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"She has learned she can read minds as well. She was trying to see what was in that dirty mind of yours." Pulse replied.

Gambit chuckled and tapped the side of his head. "Y' ain't gonna be doin' any of dat spooky stuff on moi, chere. I got shields to guard against stuff like dat." He told her. 'Merci, dieu.' He thought.

**X-Mansion**

Bobby sat on his bed looking through his history book. He ignored Sam as the other young man entered. "Hey, Ah wasn't expecting ta see you here." The blond said surprised.

"Well, I am here studying. I am not going around chasing after girls like others say I do." Bobby grumbled.

"Who said that?" Sam asked. He sat down on his own bed and stared at his roommate.

"Kitty and Jubilee. They say that I was chasing after Kitty while I was with Rogue." Bobby replied.

"Really? Ah thought ya were with Kitty. Ya were always around her. Ah don't even think Ah saw ya near Rogue." Sam told the other man.

Bobby tossed his book at the end of the bed. "Why is everybody saying that? Kitty is my friend. I was hanging out with her. I was not flirting with her or anything. We've been friends since she moved her. I was one of the first to make her feel welcome, just like with Rogue." Bobby said to Sam.

"Ya spent a lot of time with her. Ah always saw Rogue sitting by herself when ya were off playing pool. Ya never asked her to play with ya, did ya?" Sam asked.

Bobby was getting agitated again. "It's not my fault Rogue isolated herself. She knew she could play with us anytime she wanted." He defended himself.

"Well let me ask you this. If Rogue started hanging out with that Gambit guy like you did with Kitty, how would ya react?" The blonde asked. Bobby sat on his bed thinking for a moment.

"I would kick his ass. That guy is a jerk. I'd never let Rogue near him." Bobby stated. Sam sighed and shook his head.

"Well, they spent quite a bit of time together, but you never noticed. She kept pushing him away because she was with ya. That was until you said how dangerous she was. What ya just said before is how Rogue must have felt when ya hang out with Kitty. You say you guys are only friends, but how does she know that?" Sam told the other boy.

Bobby was going to defend himself again when it finally kicked into him what he had been doing for the past months. He had been pushing Rogue away without even knowing it. "Oh my god." He whispered.

"Ya finally get why they are mad at ya?" Sam asked him.

"Yeah, I think I do." Bobby mumbled. He knew he had to find Rogue and apologize to her for what he did.

* * *

"Ah got one request from both of ya." Rogue told Pulse and Gambit as they sat down at the table in the hotel room. Their room service had just arrived. "Ah know ya guys have been fightin' for the past days and Ah don't care why it is, Ah just want it ta stop." She ordered them.

Augustus looked over at Remy, who looked back at him. "I have had no problem with him. He is the one who has the problem." Pulse defended himself.

"Y' gonna have a whole lotta problems if y' don't shut up." Remy shot back and pulled out a card.

"ENOUGH!" Rogue shouted. "If ya guys can't get along with each other, just tolerate each other around meh. You two act worse than children. And if ya don't knock it off Ah'll kick both of your asses, do Ah make mahself clear?" She demanded and looked at them.

"Oui, chere." Remy nodded.

"For you, Rogue, I will." Pulse said and held his hand out to Gambit for a peace offering.

"Fine." Remy said and shook his hand.

"That's better. Ah'll be right back." Rogue told the boys before heading into the bathroom. As soon as the door shut, the fighting began.

"I have no problem with him." Remy mocked Pulse. "Y'r such a kiss ass. I should kick it right now, boy."

Pulse pulled out his silver wear and glared at Gambit. "We agreed to get along." Augustus told him and started digging into his dinner.

"When she is in de room, oui, but I do not see her." Remy told him. Pulse rolled his eyes.

"It is a good thing I decided to join you two on this trip. I think by now she would have lost her mind traveling with you." Pulse told him.

"No woman around Remy LeBeau is disappointed. Y' probably wouldn't know how to please a woman." Remy smirked and began eating.

"I am finished talking with you. If you say one more word, I will make you pay." Augustus replied. He opened up his dessert and started picking at it with a fork.

"What y' gonna do, insult moi to death." Remy laughed. He looked up at Pulse to see the other man throw his fork at him. Gambit ducked and it flew behind him. "Y' got bad aim, homme. Let moi show y' how it is done." He said before flicking from jello at Pulse and hitting him in the face.

"You will pay for that." Augustus yelled and picked up his cake he had for dessert.

"What is goin' on here?" Rogue asked as she exited the bathroom, only to find a piece of cake heading at her and hitting her in the chest.

Remy turned around to see Rogue, who was looking extremely pissed off. 'Wow, didn't know de chere could turn dat red.' He thought to himself before he started laughing. Pulse began laughing with him.

"Why are we laughing?" Pulse asked Gambit in a low voice.

"Keep laughing or she will kill us." Remy whispered back.

**End of Chapter 11**

A/N: Here is a list of people Rogue has touched and their powers. Logan: X1 (healing factor), Magneto X1 (metal), Iceman X2 (ice), Pyro X2 (fire), Emma Frost earlier in the story (telepath only, not adding the diamond), Shadowcat earlier in story (pass through objects), and I am sure I am missing some, but these are the powers I am focusing on.

Special Thanks to:** tfobmv18, summergirlforever, UltimateGammy91, Wanda W, FluidDegree, Hawaiichick, ShannaK**, and **laenamoradadeROGUE** . I appreciate you guys taking the time to review and telling me what you think of the fic so far. Any ideas or suggestions on how to improve this fic are more than welcome.

Next Chapter: it will be updated on February 11th. I decided to move the update day early due to the long wait for this short chapter. Though the next chapter is kind of boring and sets up for chapter 13, which is the first fluff chapter.


	12. Set Up

Story confusing yet? No? Well I guess I'll throw some more things in. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer**: If I owned any of these characters, would I really be writing? Answer is yes, but I still don't own any of the characters in this story.

Jubilee sat on her bed listening to her iPod. She hadn't spoken to anyone the entire day. During class, she sat in the back away from the others and didn't look at them as she left. _You alright?_ She heard Jono say at the door. She took her headphones off and sat them on her nightstand.

"I just can't believe how cold hearted they are. They are not even worried that their friend is missing. I went to talk to Miss. Monroe, but she was in a meeting with the new teacher and I don't know where Wolvie is." She told him.

_It's not going to help fighting with them either. People have different ways of expressing their feelings when they are scared. I'm sure they didn't mean anything by it. _Jono said to her as he sat down next to her on the bed.

"But they are the ones that pushed her away. Kitty knew Bobby was Rogue's boyfriend and she still insisted on getting close to him and he knew he was hurting Rogue, but still kept on doing it." Jubilee replied to him.

_I think Kitty thought she was being friends with Bobby than his girlfriend. Piotr told me that Kitty always invited him to join them whenever they went anywhere. He said he was the happiest when Kitty would talk to him, but Bobby always kept getting in the way. She might not realize what she was doing. Besides, do you really want to be that bitter at your friends? _Jono asked her.

Jubilee sighed. She hated being angry at people. It was so much easier a month ago when they were all hanging out in the recreation room or going out as friends. Now none of them wanted to talk to each other. "I guess." She replied before Logan entered the room unannounced.

"Hey squirt, where's Rogue?" He asked the black haired girl. He raised an eyebrow at Jono, who seemed to squirm under his glaring eyes. The young man scooted away from Jubilee.

"We don't know. She packed up some of her stuff and didn't leave a note." Jubilee replied.

"What? Why didn'tcha you tell anyone?" Logan demanded. This was not what he needed at the moment. Xavier was not acting right, he was beginning to have visions of his past that were not clear, and he was trying to start a relationship with Ororo.

"We were, but then we got into a fight." Jubilee mumbled. She was beginning to feel guilty again. Even though she wasn't talking with Kitty or Bobby, she should have gone to one of the teachers anyways. She knew she couldn't go to the new blonde teacher and Mr. Worthington had returned and was still depressed over his father's murder. Sage left for a mission of some sort and Mr. McCoy was busy at a convention in Los Angeles. She knew if she mentioned it to Logan or Ororo, they would have dropped what they were doing to find out what happened to Rogue. They would have done it for any of them.

Logan shook his head and went to the door. "Gambit is gone too; we think he might have gone with her." Jubilee added before Logan left.

Logan growled as he exited the room. 'He lays one hand on her, I'll cut them off.'

Jono sighed in relief when Logan left._ No offense, but he scares the crap out of me._

Jubilee laughed and scooted closer to Jono. "Don't worry, he's bark is worse than his bite. Unless you piss him off, then you could be in trouble." She teased him.

**Kitty's Room**

Kitty opened her door to find her current roommate and new roommate fighting. "What the hell is your problem?" Lorna shouted at Wanda.

"I don't appreciate your clothes on my bed. I didn't violate your side, don't violate mine." Wanda snarled at the green haired girl. She had only been at the school for a day and already she was annoyed with the people that lived there. Xavier still refused to meet with her, her brother was off running after some of the girls, and she didn't like having to share a room with Kitty and Lorna.

"Will you guys be quiet." Kitty muttered to the two girls. She didn't mind Lorna, but Wanda had been causing trouble since she arrived. She was about to sit on her bed when she felt the room begin to rattle and noticed Wanda's hands were glowing blue.

"Knock it off!" Lorna shouted at Wanda, who brought her hands to her head. She thought the other girl was causing trouble, not knowing that she was actually losing control of her powers again.

"I can't." The black haired girl cried and fell to her knees.

"Wanda!" Pietro yelled and sped into the room. He held his sister to try and calm her. He glared over at the other two girls, knowing one of them had to have upset his twin sister. "Which one of you started it?" He rubbed Wanda's back, trying to sooth her.

"I didn't start anything, she did." Lorna defended herself. She was thinking of requesting a different room, but didn't want to leave Kitty. Maybe they could move Wanda.

Wanda began to calm down and the rattling stopped. Pietro moved away from his sister and confronted the two girls. "If I ever hear you say anything to my sister or cause her to lose control again, you'll regret it." He snarled at them.

"You have a lot of nerve threatening them." Piotr said. He was walking down the hall to visit Kitty when he heard Pietro's threat. Pietro glared at the bigger man and grabbed Wanda by the arm.

"Come on, maybe we can find a new room for you." Pietro muttered. Wanda glared at the three students before leaving.

"I'd hate to be part of that family." Lorna said before finally making her bed.

"Are you okay, Kitty?" Piotr asked her with concern. Lorna looked over her shoulder at the two and smiled. She thought it was so cute how Piotr cared so much for Kitty.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks." Kitty smiled at him. Piotr nodded.

"I heard Bobby was going to the movies tonight. I'm sure you will be going with him." Piotr said quietly.

"What? Defiantly no. After what Jubilee said about me liking Bobby totally grossed me out." Kitty told him. "However, if you want to go to the movies with me that I wouldn't mind."

Piotr felt his heart jump when she said that Bobby grossed her out. Not to mention, she would rather spend time with him than the younger boy. "Um, I don't know. I think I have some homework to do." He hesitated. Lorna rolled her eyes.

"For cry eye." The green haired girl muttered. "Kitty, do you like Piotr?" She asked the brown haired girl.

"Of course." She answered.

"Piotr, you like Kitty?" Lorna turned to the Piotr.

"Yes." Piotr replied.

"Okay, you two are going out to the movies tonight. There is no homework due until next week, you can do it later. You guys go out and have fun." Lorna ordered.

Piotr and Kitty looked at each other. "I could do the assignment tomorrow. It's been a while since I've gone out." He said. Kitty smiled and grabbed his hand.

"We'll have to make up for the lost time." Kitty told him and led him out the door.

**Woods in Canada**

"This place is a dump." John growled to Mystique as they walked through an old house. It was in the middle of the woods and near a swamp.

"This actually looks cleaner than how the hideout looked when Toad was with us." Mystique told the younger man.

"What the hell is Magneto's plan anyways? Gather a bunch of mutants and attack people? He already did that." John muttered. He stepped on a black banana peel covered in flies. He looked down in disgust and scrapped it off his shoe.

"Most likely. That or another turn everyone into mutants." Mystique said.

"If that's the case, Rogue will drain him herself. The guy is a fool if he thinks Rogue will join us willingly. When she got back from what Magneto did to her, she was traumatized. She had nightmares about it. The only people she told were, Bobby, Wolverine, and myself." John stated.

"I know the man that is going to get her." Mystique smiled. "He can be very persuasive and can charm any girl into doing what he wants. Unfortunately, he is also too cocky for his own good."

"When is he going to bring Rogue?" John asked. He highly doubted it would work. Rogue may have been insecure, but she wasn't stupid.

"He will call us and tell us where to go when the time comes." She stopped and put her hand up to motion John to stop as well.

"What?" He asked, looking around. Suddenly, a bird flew out of the corner of the room and was caught by a tongue. "Ew." John gasped.

"Don't knock it until you try it." Toad told the younger man as he ate the bird. He looked over at Mystique and gave a smug smirk. "Long time no see, beautiful. Come back for a piece of me?"

Mystique gave a disgusted look and pulled out a gun she had been carrying and pointed it at him. "As I told you before, not in this or any lifetime." She growled and lowered the gun. "We are here to bring you to Magneto for his magnificent plan." She explained.

"So I heard." Toad replied and used a bone to pick at his teeth. "As much fun it sounds, I don't like being left for dead."

"You won't be." John told him. He knew how Magneto worked. At the beginning he felt that Magneto could teach he more than Xavier and really wanted to help mutants. However, after the recent events, he knew that Magneto only cared for himself and could care less what happened to mutant inferior to him. If given the chance, he would also be left for dead by Magneto. Just like the mutants he sacrificed on the front line of the battle. "We are here to recruit you, but we have no allegiance to Magneto." He said.

Mystique shot John a glare. She didn't want anyone other than John and her to know of the plan. If Toad was secretly working for Magneto, their plan could blow up in their face. "We are assisting Magneto until he decided to step down and let someone else take over. Unlike Magneto, we do not leave our brothers behind." Mystique told him.

"You can tell metal head that I'll give him another run." Toad said, walking up to Mystique, his tongue running over his lips. "I prefer you to be leader." He patted Mystique on the butt and walked towards the door. Mystique was about to reach for her gun again when John stopped her.

"We need him now, you can kill him later." He suggested to her. She snarled and followed after Toad.

**Cerebro**

Xavier sat in the large room with the helmet to Cerebro on his head. His eyes were closed as he went through various minds to find what he was looking for. He knew he could not penetrate Magneto's mind, so he tried some of his lackey's. To his surprise he found his old student's mind, but left it alone. It did not have the information that he needed.

He entered into Pyro's mind and heard him talking with Mystique. 'Pathetic.' Xavier thought to himself. It had been easy to enter Pyro's mind. He gathered the information he needed on where Magneto was located and found out what his old friend was up to.

He removed the helmet and smiled to himself. 'Soon, it will be complete.' He thought to himself and opened his eyes to reveal nothing, but charcoals of darkness.

**Chicago**

"Ah can't believe this is it." Rogue groaned as she and Gambit gazed up at a large building with broken glass windows. The front door had a sign on it that it had been shut down two days before due to lack of funding.

"Dere still has to be someone who has dat cure." Remy told her and looked over at Rogue to find her crying. "Chere?" He placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Ah just want this gone. This was supposed ta be the end of them." She cried. Remy pulled her into a hug, her face into his shoulder and he ran a hand through her hair.

"We'll find a way, chere. If dis is what y' really want." He said to her. He heard footsteps and looked over to see Pulse standing there. "Y' find anythin', homme?" Remy asked. Normally he would a snide remark to say at the other man, but not when Rogue was so upset.

"They said that the guy that was funding them was murdered. They decided to shut down because they were afraid people would come after them also." Pulse reported to them. "You going to be okay, Rogue?" He asked.

Rogue pulled away from Remy and wiped her eyes. "Ah would be fine if Ah had your and Remy's powers, instead Ah got vampire powers that suck the life outta anyone Ah touch. Ah don't know how ta control it or if it can be controlled." She replied.

"It will be alright, Rogue. We will find a way, even if it takes a while, for you to be able to touch." He swore to her. Remy sighed. He knew he shouldn't be saying this.

"I know someone in New York City dat might be able to get y' de cure. He might be able to help y'." He told them.

"Why didn't ya say anythin' earlier?" Rogue asked him.

"Y' wanted to come here, I didn' want to stop y'. But seein' as this place ain' gonna be any help, I thought I'd mention it." Remy told her.

"I can book us a flight tonight if you want." Pulse asked Rogue. She nodded and wiped away the rest of the tears that threatened to escape from her eyes. There was still hope she could be normal. Pulse pulled out his phone and walked behind the building.

"Y' feelin' better?" Gambit asked her. Rogue nodded when they heard a gun click. They turned to see a man in a sweatshirt and scarf covering his face pointing a gun at them.

"Give me your money or your dead." The man said. A card slid into Remy's hand and began to charge.

'Come on, man. I need the money. My wife and kids are starving.' Rogue heard the man's thoughts in her head. "Put your card away." Rogue whispered to Gambit before she used ShadowCat's powers and ran her hand through the other man's and grabbed the gun. He began to panic and moved away.

"What the hell." He freaked out and moved back into a fence. Rogue threw the gun to the side and reached into her pocket and pulled out a twenty dollar bill.

"Next time, ask nicer." She said before handing the man the money. The man looked in shock. He scrambled away from the two mutants and ran. Rogue turned to Remy. "He had a family." She told the Cajun.

"Alright guys, the plane leaves at eight o'clock tonight." Pulse told his two companions. He noticed the gun lying on the ground and looked between the two. "Is everything alright?" He asked.

"It's nothin'." Rogue told him before heading to the sidewalk followed by Gambit.

On top of the building, glaring down at the trio, someone watched them call a taxi. A low growl was heard when the taxi drove away.

**Unknown Location**

A man was watching TV in his apartment on the sixth floor, unaware of the danger he was in. On top of the building across from his was a man wearing red and black with a hood to match. "I hate these easy targets, they're no fun. It's better when the prey knows how to fight back. I bet this guy was the fat kid in gym class that went to the nurse's office to get a note. " Deadpool muttered and pulled out his gun. It was now time for a decision to make: shoot the guy from here or attack him head on. As much as he loved seeing his prey squirm, he had a busy schedule.

He was about to decide when he heard his cell phone go off. "Figures." He said before answering. "Deadpool's mercenary service, kill your guy in thirty minutes or it's free."

"Hello Wade. It's been a while." A sinister voice said on the other line.

"Nathan? Is that you? It's been a long time since I've seen you! How have you been, Cable?" Deadpool laughed into the phone.

"Shut up! I am not Cable and I am not your friend, I am your employer. I have a job I need you to do." The voice told him, sounding very annoyed. He didn't expect this idiot to remember him.

"Starting rate is one million, it's an extra half a million after the first person. Also it depends on how you want them to die. I know of a hundred different ways to kill a person. From slow agonizing, PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD KILL ME to the 'oh shit I'm dead, how the hell did that happen?" Deadpool told the voice.

"I don't require you to kill anyone." The voice responded.

"Um, I'm sorry, you got the wrong number. I am a mercenary. I kill people. I watch them bleed to death. I watch them beg not to die and do it anyways." Deadpool explained.

"I need you to kidnap someone for me. The job pays ten million for this one person." The voice told him, catching the mercenary's interest.

"Can you hold on a moment." Deadpool said into the phone before pulling it away from his ear. He aimed his gun at his current target and shot five times, killing the man. "Now I'm listening."

**End of Chapter 12**

**A/N: **I revised this chapter a few times, but it didn't come out the way I wanted it to. Especially the Gambit/Pulse/Rogue and Mystique/Toad/Pyro part. The next chapter will be much better.

**Special Thanks to: ****tfobmv18, Wanda W, laenamoradadeROGUE, Hawaiichick, enchantedlight, **and **Smoochynose.** I appreciate you guys taking time to review

Since it is coming up, I've decided to give a little quiz question. All I am going to say is it could be one answer or it could be two or all of the above.

Who will betray Rogue?

Pulse, who appeared about of nowhere and willingly helped Rogue.

Gambit, who has been following Rogue around entire fic, had mysterious phone call, and suggested they head back to New York.

Gambit and Pulse, both of them have their own agenda for her.

Person following Rogue has not shown up yet.

Rogue is having a dream and will wake up to reveal this is an alternate reality where Bobby is her brother, Jubilee is her mother, and Logan is her puppy.

Chapter 14 it will be revealed.


	13. Past Lies

This chapter gives a bit more back story.

Italic is memory

**Disclaimer**: I do not own X-Men. As of how they are in the comics as of now, I am glad I do not.

* * *

"Now boarding, flight 180 to New York." An announcement was made over the intercom.

"That would be us." Pulse announced to Gambit and Rogue. "I'm sorry to inform you guys, but they separated us. One of us will have to sit in coach." He told them.

"Dat is really nice of y' to volunteer." Remy told him and grabbed Rogue's carryon bag and followed her to the gate.

"I wasn't volunteering; I was telling you that one of us has to sit back there." Pulse argued.

"Den y' shouldn' have brought it up." Remy shot back at him.

"This is ridiculous, I shouldn't have to-" He began to argue, when Rogue turned around.

"Just sit back there, it ain't that bad." She told him. Pulse gulped and saw Remy gave him a 'ha ha I win' look. Rogue handed her ticket to be scanned and then preceded down to the plane.

Rogue and Gambit found their seats in first class, while Pulse went back to coach. "This won't be so bad." Pulse said to himself as he sat by the window and buckled up.

"I DON'T WANT TO GO ON THE PLANE!" He heard a little girl cry as she and her father sat down in the seats in back of Augustus. The mother with a baby sat next to him.

"We have been through this. We are not driving thirty hours to grandma's house." The mother yelled at the daughter from next to him. The baby she was holding was staring at Pulse. He smiled down at the baby and waved his fingers at him.

"Hi little guy, what's your name?" He asked the baby. The baby began to cry loudly. The mother began to sooth the baby. "Sorry." He apologized and turned to look out the window. An announcement was made over the intercom on what to do if the plane were to crash.

"Daddy, he said we are going to die!" The little girl cried from behind him. The father tried to explain to the six year old it was just a precaution. Finally, the plane began to move for takeoff. "It's moving, make it stop moving!" The little girl screened and began kicking Pulse's seat.

'It's only a two hour trip. It's only a two hour trip.' He thought to himself. The teenager in front of him pulled his seat down so it was practically resting on Pulse's lap, giving him barely any room. 'Okay, at least it can't get any worse.' He thought to himself.

"There honey." The mother next to him said to the baby. The baby turned his face to Pulse and threw up, most of it landing on Pulse and his seat.

'Son of a bitch!' Pulse cursed to himself as he got up to go to the bathroom.

In first class, Rogue took the seat next to the window and Remy had the aisle. "Nice to finally be alone, no?" He said to Rogue with a charming smile.

"Actually, Ah sent Augustus back there for a reason." Rogue told him.

"Not gonna complain about dat, de sight up here is much better." Remy told her, his sunglasses coming down to show his red eyes looking into her green. He had to keep them on so he wouldn't attract attention with his eyes.

"Ah wanted ta ask ya somethin'. Last night Ah heard ya talkin' in your sleep." Rogue told him. Remy sat up.

'Merde.' He cursed to himself and began thinking of what he had dreamed the night before. 'Den again; if I did say somethin' about dat, she woulda killed moi.' He sighed in relief.

"Who is Genevieve?" She asked. Remy froze.

_He had just arrived in Paris a week ago to steal a sacred diamond for his client. It was said to belong to the Darceneaux family and was kept by the youngest daughter, Genevieve. His plan was simple, become friends with Genevieve and retrieve it without having to sneak inside her highly secured apartment. He stood outside her building watching the people who entered and exited, trying to memorize their faces. Unfortunately, his client had only given him a name and not a picture of the woman. _

"_Excuse me." A woman said as she brushed by some of the people to get to the street, accidently dropping her purse along the way. She was late for work and needed to get a taxi as quickly as possible. Remy went over and picked up the purse and tapped the woman on the shoulder. _

"_Excuse moi, Miss?" He asked the woman. She had brown hair tied into a pony tail and looked to be twenty-one or so with green eyes. 'Hello, beautiful. Maybe I should stay here a little while longer.' He thought to himself._

"_Sorry, I don't have time." The woman told him, only glancing back at him. _

"_I believe y' dropped dis." He told her. She turned around and was shocked she had dropped her purse. _

"_Thank you so much." She took her purse and smiled at him. "I've been having such a terrible week. Someone broke into my parent's home, the mob killed my sister, the last thing I need is for my ID to get stolen or credit cards." She sighed. He could feel the sadness roll off of her. _

"_Sorry to hear dat, chere. Dere anythin' else I could do for y'? I have a rental car." He told her, knowing she had been waiting for a taxi._

"_Thanks, but I am not sure. I just met you and don't even know you." She told him. _

"_De names Remy Lebeau." He told her extending his hand out to hers. She placed her hand in his and he brought it to his lips to kiss it. The woman blushed slightly. She hadn't been on a date in two years and was beginning to think there was no guy out there for her. _

'_This one is certainly charmer.' She thought to herself. "My name is Genevieve Darceneaux." She told him. _

"Some girl I used to know." He said quietly. Rogue raised an eyebrow at him. He didn't sound convincing.

"She had ta have been more than that. Ya sounded like she meant more." She told him.

"_This was lovely." Genevieve smiled at Remy as they stood outside her door. They had come back from their date and were celebrating their first year anniversary of being together. _

"_De day isn't over yet, chere." He leaned in a kissed her on the lips. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him back. _

"_Your right, it's not. I've got some plans for us as well." She whispered to him. "If you could meet me back here around ten." _

"_What if I don't wanna wait?" He asked and kissed her neck. Genevieve laughed and pulled away from him. _

"_Now none of that. If you're a good boy, you'll get your reward." She teased him. "Why don't you go back to your hotel and say good-bye to Henri. He's leaving soon, isn't he?" She asked. _

"_I see him all de time. I'd rather spend it with y'." Remy whined. _

"_No, now go say good-bye to him and meet me later." She ordered him_

Remy clenched his fist and shook his head. "Non, only a friend." He answered.

"_Y'r fallin' for her, aren't y?" Remy sighed as he was scolded by his brother, Henri. He knew his brother was right, but at the moment he didn't want to listen to this again._

"_So what if I am?" Remy shot back at his older brother. Henri shook his head in disappointment._

"_Remy, dis isn't a game no more. Y' don't have to use her. We got de diamond. Y' should end dis before somethin' happens." Henri suggested. He already saw his younger brother hurt once after Belladonna had been murdered. He didn't know why, but he had a feeling history was going to repeat itself._

"_I ain' playin' no game. Maybe at de beginnin', but not anymore. I love her and do anythin' for her." Remy told him before pulling out a cigarette and lit it with his index finger. _

"_Except be truthful with her. Are you ever going to tell her de whole reason why y' two started goin' out." Henri yelled at him._

"_Why de hell are y' still here? Why don' y' go back to New Orleans with y'r wife?" Remy shouted at him. Henri grabbed his bags and headed for the door._

"_I'm still here because I don' want y' to throw y'r life away, but if y' want to be a fool about it, fine." Henri told him before opening the door._

"_Go to hell." Remy said in a low voice. Henri sighed and left the room. _

"What happened ta her?" Rogue asked him. Remy shut his eyes.

_Remy rode the elevator to the top of Genevieve's apartment building. She had left him a note on her door that she had a surprise for him. The doors opened and Remy walked out into the freezing windy air. He pulled his duster closer to him and looked around, but didn't see Genevieve anywhere. "Genny?" He called out for her. _

"_Well, it looks like our guest of honor has arrived." He heard a maniac voice say. Gambit turned with cards in his hands to the source. He felt himself freeze when he saw behind the man was Genevieve and Henri tied up and dangling off the building. _

_"What de hell y' doin' here?" Remy growled at him. The man laughed at him and walked over to his victims._

"_That ain't important right now. We're going to play a little game. Who is more important to ya? The little girl ya have been usin' for the past year." Genevieve stared in shock at Remy. _

"_Remy, this is true?" Genevieve asked him. A tear ran down her cheek. _

"_Oh, I see I stumble on some ground that I wasn't supposed ta." The man laughed. He turned back to Genevieve and grabbed her face, cutting her cheek. "Yeah, he's been usin' ya ta get that pretty little diamond ya had kept away." _

_Remy turned his head away from Genevieve's sad expression. Henri was right, he should have told her the truth. It had started out as a mission, but he really did love her. _

"_Your other choice, Cajun, is your brother." The man told him pointing to Henri, who was struggling to unbind the rope that held him. _

"_Remy, save Genevieve. I can-" Henri began to yell when the man punched him. _

"_I didn't say ya could talk." The man growled and turned back to Remy. "Now who is it gonna be, punk?" _

_Remy had no idea what to do. There was no way he was going to sacrifice his brother nor Genny. He saw Henri mouthing to him to save Genevieve. He knew his brother could get out of his bindings with ease, but if something went wrong, he didn't know if he could handle losing him._

"_Why don' y' be a man and take me on instead and let dem go." Remy told the man and charged the cards. Once again, the man laughed, something Remy was getting really sick of hearing. _

"_I'll give ya ta the count of three ta make your decision before I kill em both. Now, one." The man began counting. _

"_Genevieve." Remy told him. As soon as Genny and Henri were safe, he was going to have this guy begging for death. No one messed with the people he loved. _

"_Nice choice." The man said and stood by Genevieve. "I should have explained the rules a bit better. Who ya love more is the one that dies." He laughed and cut the rope causing Genevieve to fall. _

"_No!" Remy yelled and ran to the side of the building. He saw her hit the pavement thirteen stories down. Her body lay broken in the streets. _

"_Y' bastard." Henri yelled. He had been able to cut the ropes the held him and launch himself at the man. He tackled him, but the other was stronger and once again he found himself at the mercy of this mad man._

"_Hey Cajun." The man snarled at Remy, who was devastated over Genevieve's death turned to see the man holding his brother. "This will be my parting gift, until we meet again." He laughed before snapping Henri's neck. His brother fell to the ground limply. _

Remy opened his eyes. His father always taught him never to cry and he knew he wouldn't, but it had been the worst moment of his life. Worse than when Bella had died. "Don't know. We only knew each other for a short while. It was nothin'." He lied to Rogue. He did it more for himself than anything.

"Oh." Rogue whispered and turned back to the window. In only a few short hours she would find out if she could be cured or not. "Do ya think the guy ya mentioned can help meh?" She asked him.

Remy shrugged. "Don't know, but it can't help, but to find out. He's good at trackin' down people, I'm sure he'll be able to find someone who worked on de cure." He answered. "What are y' goin' to do if dere is none?"

Rogue sighed, she knew it was a truth she could possibly face. "Ah don't know. There ain't no where that will accept meh." Rogue told him.

"What about at dat school? Dey seemed to care about y'." Remy said to her. Rogue bit her lip.

"They don't accept meh. They wanted meh gone." Rogue told him. She had found herself again last night tempted to call the mansion and tell them where she was, but then she remembered what Xavier had said to her and decided against it.

"Don' know about dat, y'r petite roommate seemed to be fond of y', and some of de ones around her." Remy stated. Rogue nodded. "De others are just assholes. Don' know why y' pay attention to what dey say."

"Yeah." She whispered. She remembered one day Monet had been making fun of her and Logan cut in and told her to knock it off. There was also another time she had heard Jubilee, Kitty, and Bobby defending her. Warren had always been kind to her, as well as Sam and Piotr. "Ah just feel like Ah'm a burden ta them." She sighed and began playing with her hair.

"Don' go actin' like a wimp again." Remy said to her. She dropped her hair and looked at him. "Y' act like y'r scared. Where's dat Rogue dat blasted moi and Pulse de other night. De one dat don't put up with bullshit."

"Ah ain't actin' like a wimp!" She argued back at him.

"Den prove it, go back to de mansion and don' put up with all dat crap." Remy dared her.

Rogue hesitated. She supposed there wouldn't really be another choice if there was no cure. It was true she had been happy when she was with her friends. She looked over at Remy as he waited for her answer. "Will ya go with meh?" She asked him.

Remy smiled and placed his hand over her gloved one. "For y' chere, of course." He said to her and curled his fingers between hers. "Besides, haven't seen my petite Stormy in a while." He smiled.

"Why do ya call her that?" She asked him.

"To piss her off. She hates dat name." He answered.

**X-Mansion**

Lorna, Jubilee, and Jono were sitting in the kitchen eating dinner, they didn't notice Bobby enter and open the fridge. He rummaged through it for something to eat. He got out some old turkey from the night before and put it on the counter next to an ice tray that was left out. "Who left this out!" Bobby yelled and picked up the tray. The other three teens turned to look at him. "You poor babies, you're all warm and watery. Don't worry, daddy is here." He cooed to the melting ice.

Jubilee rolled her eyes while Lorna giggled. The green haired girl got up from the table and walked over to him. "Sorry, it was my fault." She told him and took the tray from him.

"Oh, um, it's okay." He said and scratched his head nervously. "It just really upsets me when people leave them out." Jubilee snorted.

"He also freaks out when snow melts." She added.

"I think it's cute." Lorna told him before putting the tray back in the freezer. Bobby blushed and went over and began making his sandwich.

They heard Kitty and Piotr talking before they entered the kitchen. Kitty looked over at Jubilee and then at Bobby. "Hi." Kitty finally said. Jono tapped her leg with his.

"Hi." Jubilee responded. "So, how are you?" She asked. It felt awkward.

Kitty walked over to the table and sat down. "I just wanted to say that I am sorry I yelled at you earlier. You're right, we should be more worried about Rogue." She apologized.

"No, it's alright. I think I over exaggerated." Jubilee told her. "Are we friends again?" She asked the brown haired girl, who smiled.

"When did we stop?" Kitty asked before hugging her friend.

Bobby finished making his sandwich and was going to leave the room when Lorna stopped him. "Where are you going?" She asked him.

"They don't want me here. Not after what I did." Bobby answered her. Jubilee and Kitty turned around to look at him. "Yes, I now realize how I treated Rogue. I am the scum of the earth, okay?" He told the two girls.

"Who finally got it through his head what we've been telling him all along?" Kitty asked.

"I had Sam talk to him." Lorna answered.

**Office**

Logan stormed into Ororo's office. "Something wrong?" She didn't have to ask, she could read it on his face.

"Rogue's gone and so is Gambit." He told her. "None of the kids know where she went."

"I'm pretty sure if Gambit is gone, he went with her." Ororo told him and began stacking up the tests she was grading back into a folder.

"Ya mean kidnap her. I don't trust that kid." Logan snarled. Ororo glared at him.

"Gambit would not kidnap her." Ororo defended her friend. She knew Gambit better than anyone else in the house and probably in the world.

"How do ya know? He's a thief. Not ta mention he's been hangin' around her a little too much." Logan told her.

"You are accusing him because he is a thief?" Ororo almost laughed when she heard Logan's remark. It was ridiculous. "Here's something I have not told you yet. I am a thief as well. In fact, Gambit taught me to be a thief when I was younger. Have I ever tried to kidnap anyone or done anything?" Ororo asked him. Logan didn't answer.

"I know why Gambit has been hanging around Rogue so much. If you haven't noticed she had been depressed with how some of the students treat her and her powers returning." Ororo explained.

"So he's playin' off her weakness." Logan stated. Ororo shook her head. She loved Logan, but he could be dense sometimes.

"Remy is an empath. He knows when someone is depressed, happy, or up to something. It is how I met him. My home was attacked and I was separated from my family. I was scared and alone and he found me and took care of me until we found them. He's kept in touch with me ever since." Ororo told him.

"It don't mean nothin', Ro. People change. When he was here there was somethin' fishy about him. I know he's keepin' stuff from us." Logan said to her.

"Like you aren't." Ororo told him before leaving the room.

**Magneto's Base**

Magneto smiled from behind his desk. His brotherhood stood before him with his new recruits, Revanche and Toad. "So, are we going to stand her all day or you going to tell us what you want?" John interrupted his thoughts. The young man was beginning to outlive his usefulness.

"Yes. A mutant by the name of Forge has finally built a machine that I've been waiting for." Magneto stated and got up from his seat and walked over to the machine covered by a cloth. "It has the ability to transfer one mutant's power into another."

'Oh crap. He's doing super mutant shit.' John thought annoyed. He knew this was another stupid plan that was bound to fail.

"Also, I've just received the phone call concerning, Rogue. She is on a flight to New York. I think it would be considerate of us to meet her. Mystique, Avalanche, and myself will go. The rest of you make sure Cyclops does not venture out of the base." Magneto ordered.

"Speaking of him, what are you going to do with Rogue and Cyclops in the same building. I am sure that will spark a memory for him." John said sarcastically.

"They will be separated." Magneto answered the younger man. John rolled his eyes and walked to the door.

'This is so stupid.' He thought to himself.

**Airport**

Remy and Rogue met Augustus as soon as they exited the plane. "Did you have a nice flight?" Pulse asked. His shirt had stains on it, his hair was a mess, and it looked like his eye was twitching.

"What happened to you?" Rogue asked him.

"Damn, homme. Y' smell." Remy told the blond.

"I am NEVER flying coach again!" He stated.

**End of Chapter 13**

**Special Thanks** to: **laenamoradadeROGUE, Wanda W, PrincessRhia, tfobmv18, enchantedlight**, and **Special2**. Thank you guys so much for taking the time to review and telling me what you thought of the last chapter.

A/N: From the question in the last chapter, lots of people picked** C. **I'm going to be nice and tell you all that is not right and no I am not just saying that to throw people off, it really isn't **C**. That leaves **A, B**, or **D**. I'm taking E out because well, even if I was drunk, I'd never write that in a million years. Also, what Bobby was saying about the ice cubes: X-Men 358.

Next Chapter: Part 1 of this story is now finished, now onto part 2 which i've nicknamed Battle Arena. It is finally revealed who is after Rogue and what ole Cyke has been up to. Also, it is possible, Xavier gets creepier!


	14. Betrayals

This chapter got updated a lot sooner than expected. My teacher is nice and canceled out midterm!!

bold is Xavier telepathically, italic is either memory scene or Jono talking.

Disclaimer: I own nothing, except this computer and Microsoft word.

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Scott Summers was starting to become restless. Magneto let him roam around the base all he liked, but he was unable to leave. There was no way for him to have outside communication and the other's looked at him with disgust. He had caught a comment by John that he was part of the enemy and didn't know why Scott was even here.

Unfortunately, his memory was still foggy with only parts of it he could remember. There were a few scenes' that caught his attention. One was when he had been seven years old and was on a plane with his family and it started going down. His father had given the last parachute to his brother, Alex and himself. During the fall, he got separated from his brother and woke up in an orphanage.

The next image was him meeting a bald man in a wheelchair. He couldn't remember the man's name, but he felt a sort of affection towards him, like a father figure.

The last was the one he held most dear to him. It was of Jean. He remembered meeting her for the first time. She was already living with Xavier and was fourteen at the time, he was fifteen. From the moment he met her, he had a crush on her. She had been the most beautiful woman he had ever met. Images of when he asked her out, their first date, kiss, and first passionate night together filled his mind. These were also covered with images of her holding back water and raising the jet he and others had been on. He could see the others faces, but his mind only concentrated on the one he loved. The final was their last kiss together before everything went black.

"There has to be a way out of here." Scott said to himself frustrated as he pounded on a locked door. He thought about lowering his glasses, but knew that would cause too much noise. Magneto had taken his visor from him and said he would give it back when he returned. Each passing day he started to trust the man less and less. There seemed to be something off about him. At the beginning he believed every word since it was the only thing he knew. However, now as his memory was coming back, it all seemed farfetched.

He sighed in defeat as the door still wouldn't budge. He supposed he would have to wait until Magneto came back with his visor. Maybe then he could get some answers.

**The Mall**

Wanda looked through some of the CD's at the record store. She glared over at her brother who was flirting with a younger girl. 'I can't take him anywhere.' She thought to herself.

"Freak." She heard a man who worked at the store say as he passed her. Wanda put down the CD she had been holding and placed a hand on her hip.

"You want to say that to my face?" The red and black haired woman asked him. The man turned back to face her. His name tag read: Peter M.

"I would prefer not to have you people in my store." Peter told her.

"How about I ruin your face?" Wanda growled and her hands began to glow blue and the store began to shake. Items on the shelf she had been looking at began to fall off and float in the air.

"Not again." Pietro muttered to himself as he went over to his sister. "Calm down. This idiot has no idea what he's talking about." He said to his sister.

"This is what I'm talking about. You mutants are dangerous." Peter said as he backed away and into another costumer. He heard a clicking noise and turned around to find a young man holding a lighter. He would click it open and then shut it.

"You haven't seen dangerous. Now, why don't you apologize to the nice lady before I burn down this store and she destroys the rest of it?" Pyro threatened Peter. The man apologized and ran out of the store. "Idiot." John muttered and shut his lighter again.

"You didn't have to do that." Wanda told him.

"What can I say, no one insults us. These people look down at us like we are freaks when it's really them who are the freaks." John told the twins. "Names Pyro." John said as he shook Pietro and Wanda's hand.

"I'm Quicksilver and this is my sister Wa-" Pietro began to say when Wanda elbowed him.

"Scarlet Witch." Wanda introduced herself with a name she had been thinking of for herself. "You from around here?" She asked him.

"I'm with a group of mutants that fight against people like that." John told her. "You new around here? I think I would remember seeing your face." John smiled at her.

'He's flirting with her.' Pietro thought as he glared at the other boy.

"Yeah, we just moved into this lame place, Xavier's School for the lame." Wanda answered, watching his smile turn into a frown. "I take it you've heard of it?"

"Yeah, I used to go there. It didn't help at all. That's why I left." John told her before walking over to the cash register to take a pen and paper and wrote down his cell number. "This is my number. If you ever feel like learning more about your powers and not to be a weakling, call me." John told her before leaving.

"What do you think?" Pietro asked her. He was willing to go wherever she was.

"I think we might have a new home." Wanda told him with a smile.

**New York City**

They had exited the airport ten minutes ago and were walking along side the street. Pulse had gotten directions to the nearest motel for them to stay for the night. The next day they would venture out to find the guy Gambit had mentioned earlier.

Rogue hugged her green jacket tighter to her body to keep the cold out. "If y'r cold, chere, dere are things we could do to keep warm." Remy told her with a mischievous smile. Pulse rolled his eyes at the Cajun and kept on walking down the street.

"Like Ah've told ya before, not a chance, swamp rat." Rogue said to him and followed Pulse with Remy right behind her. "How much longer? Ah don't like travelin' in the dark."

"Don't worry, I'll protect ya." Remy told her and placed an arm around her shoulder as they walked.

"There should be a motel on the right in a few blocks." Pulse told Rogue, ignoring Gambit's comment. The sooner they got there, the sooner Gambit would stop.

They traveled for another ten minutes before they came up to an abandoned warehouse. "Dis is de nicest hotel I've ever seen. Look it comes with a free pet rat." Remy said sarcastically.

"Maybe we took a wrong turn?" Rogue asked Pulse.

"No, this is the place." A familiar voice said from behind them. Rogue froze. She had heard that voice in her nightmares. She turned around to see Magneto, Mystique, and a guy she had never seen before.

"What the hell!" Rogue shouted and backed away. She could feel the metal in the building behind her move.

"It's good to see you Rogue." Magneto smiled at her.

"Can't say the same." Rogue snarled at him.

"What's with de guy with de salad bowl on his head?" Remy asked. He already knew who Magneto was. What mutant didn't know?

"It's not a salad bowl!" Avalanche defended his helmet.

"Unfortunately, it's a very late night and we must be going. You'll be coming with us." Magneto told Rogue.

"Over your dead body." Rogue told him. The air around them began to grow cold. She tried to read their minds, but found them all blocked.

"If you want to do things the hard way, then so be it." Magneto looked at his two companions.

"De lady said she ain't goin', dat mean she ain' goin'." Gambit told them and took out two cards.

"I have no need for a lower class mutant like you. Mystique." Magneto snapped his fingers. The blue woman gave him a glare before turning to her opponent and ran at him. "Now my dear." He turned his attention back to Rogue. Avalanche caused the ground to shake, throwing her off her feet.

Rogue got on her knees and raised her hand at Avalanches gloves. His arms began to freeze. Avalanche stopped his attack and tried to get his gloves off. Magneto used his powers and tore apart the building behind him and used a metal slab to circle around Rogue, but it went through her. Rogue tried to push it using the power she had gotten from him three years ago, but she didn't have enough control.

"I'm sorry, Rogue." She heard behind her as a hand grabbed her around the neck. Her powers turned off. She turned to see Pulse standing behind her.

"How could you." She whispered before he knocked her out.

"Good job, Pulse. Let's go." Magneto ordered.

Gambit dodged Mystique's attacks. "This is all you have?" Mystique laughed at him. She kicked at him in the stomach, but he caught her leg.

"Pere always taught me not to hit a woman." He told her before he flipped her onto her back. She kicked his right leg out from under him and sent him on the ground. "Den again, dere is always an exception." Gambit snarled at her and punched her in the face. He pulled out a card he was going to use earlier and began to charge it.

Mystique fell back and transformed into Rogue. She smiled at him innocently. "How about now?" She smiled at him. He hesitated for a moment.

"Nice try." Gambit said before sending the card at her feet, sending her flying back. He pulled out some more cards and charged them when he saw a piece of metal strip come flying at him and knocked him back into the abandoned warehouse.

"Until next time." Mystique said and followed Magneto and the rest.

Remy ran up to the window and found Mystique and the rest of the Brotherhood gone with Rogue. He banged his fist against the wall, causing a dent. 'Dat rat bastard is gonna pay.' He thought to himself as he climbed through the window. He proceeded away from the building running a hand through his hair. "What am I gonna do?"He sighed to himself.

"I should have gotten her to go back sooner instead of lettin' her travel. She wouldn' be in dis mess." He cursed to himself. He had heard of Magneto, not from the X-Men, but through the files he had stolen. A man by the name of Erik Lehnsherr who survived during the time of the Holocaust. He had been friends with Xavier until they went their separate ways. 'Now if I was a crazed psychopath, where would I hide?' Remy thought to himself.

Remy narrowed his eyes. "Y' really need to learn how to sneak up on people, mon ami." He told the person standing behind him.

"You know why I am here, Gambit." The person stated.

"Y'r boss not keepin' his end of the bargain. He said dat I had three days before I had to bring-" He said before he felt something sharp hit him in the neck. Remy grabbed the dart from his shoulder and looked at it. 'Dis ain't good.' He thought to himself before his eyes rolled back and fell to the ground.

He tried to open his eyes again, but it was beginning to cloud and he could see figures standing above him. 'Sorry, chere.' He thought before he blacked out.

Next day- **X-Mansion**

Xavier looked outside his window with a smile on his face. Everything was going perfectly to plan. There was just one final thing before it was complete. He turned and walked over to his wheelchair behind the desk and sat down. **Storm, Wolverine, Angel, Shadowcat, Colossus, Iceman, and Jubilee. Report to my office.**

**Storm's Office**

Logan sighed as he watched Ororo leave. He didn't have time for this. He needed the team together to locate Rogue. He exited Ororo's office and looked down the hall to find her gone. 'Where did she go?' He thought to himself before another image popped in his head.

_A forest surrounded him as he walked towards his new life. He was walking away from all this. He knew he could have a better life. Logan heard a gun click behind him and turned around. "Where the hell are you going?!" An angry voice shouted at him. "You don't get to leave until it's finished! Hell, I'd love to be in Vegas right now, am I, no. I am here doing the job." _

_Logan growled and turned around. "Ya got enough people, ya don't need me." He told the young man. _

"_You're going back to her, aren't you? What is so special about her? You can always find another girl. There are millions out there, much prettier than her." The other responded, causing a growl out of Wolverine._

"_I don't expect ya ta understand, Wade. Ya never gave a damn about anyone, but yourself. She is more important to me than any of ya. Especially, him." Logan snarled at the unmasked Wade Wilson aka Deadpool. _

"_Hello, are we forgetting we have a healing factor? You've been alive for way over a hundred years. Do you know how many chicks have died in between then? What are you going to do when that happens?" Deadpool asked him sarcastically. _

"_Go back with them. I don't wanna see any of you guys again." Logan told him and began walking away._

"_You better watch your back, Logan. We're not very forgiving to traitors." Deadpool shouted after him._

Logan blinked a few times. He had no idea where that came from, but he had a sudden need to find Ororo. He ran down the hall and searched her class room, only to find Betsy and Warren inside. He searched the middle floor before heading to her room.

_Blood painted the walls of their house. The entire inside was trashed. He searched everywhere for her before going outside and finding her dead body._

"Ororo?" He called as he entered her room to find her watering her plants. Ororo looked startled. She put her watering pail down on the table and walked over to him. They just had an argument a few minutes ago and he looked like a wreck.

"Are you alright?" She asked him as he ran over to her and hugged her. "Logan?" She looked at him.

"There's so much blood." He whispered, the image still painting his memory. He backed away from her.

"What are you talking about?" She asked him. Logan gulped. He knew this all seemed strange and knew that he should explain what has been happening to him.

"I-" He hesitated. Ororo placed a hand on his shoulder and looked at him.

"You can tell me anything." She told him. "I won't judge you or criticize you. I care about you, Logan and I am worried about you." She locked eyes with him and he placed his hand over hers and brought it down between them.

"I'm starting to remember my past." He finally confessed to her. "From what I've seen of it, it ain't pretty. Some of it has been scenes, others have been fragments put together." He explained. "It's startin' ta scare me of what kinda person I was."

Ororo gave a sad smile and ran a hand along side his cheek. "I remember one of my first sessions with Professor Xavier when I came here. He explained to us that we are unable to undo what has been done, but we have a chance to change the wrongs. It is those who take a stand against the wrongs that can make a difference. Who you were or might have been is not the man you are today. You are a good and decent man." She said to him.

"How do ya know? What if these memories trigger somethin' that causes me to become what I was?" He asked her. Logan had the sudden need to get away again. He didn't want to hurt the ones he loved.

"That is up to you. But would a good man help a lost girl and bring her here? All the students here adore you. The staff respects you. Xavier told me when you left that you were one of the greatest assets to this school. And I of course love you with all my heart." Ororo answered before she kissed him. He kissed her back and bringing her closer to him.

"Thanks, Ro." He smiled at her as they broke apart.

"I've had a lot of practice dealing with stubborn men with shady pasts." She said to him. Logan gave a snort stepping back. "You may not like him, but you and Gambit have more in common than you realize."

"Now you're just makin' me sick." He told her before they were interrupted.

**Storm. Wolverine. Report to my office..** Xavier said to both of them. Logan gave a small growl. "Chuck is really pissin' me off with that." He told Ororo before they went downstairs to Xavier's office.

**Recreation room**

"You know what we haven't done in a while? Watch a movie." Bobby suggested to them. Kitty and Jubilee rolled their eyes. They knew what he was going to suggest.

"Let me guess, we are going to watch the Dark Knight again?" Jubilee asked him.

"We just got it yesterday." Bobby complained to them.

_What's so bad about that movie?_ Jono asked Jubilee. Kitty answered for her.

"He's a liar. He got it a month ago and has been watching it when everyone else has been busy. I've seen you at three in the morning watching it!" Kitty accused him. Bobby looked hurt.

"I have not. I've been busy studying and all that. The TV might have been on, I don't know what was on though." Bobby said innocently.

"Rahne told me you kicked her out of the room while she was watching Sponge Bob. I can't believe you would do that to a ten year old." Jubilee shook her head at him.

"Hey, she needs to know life is hard and you don't always get what you want." Bobby defended himself, even though it had been true.

"Then you wouldn't mind if someone took your Batman dolls and threw them away?" Piotr asked him. Bobby glared at the older and bigger student. How dare he tell the girls he secret.

"You play with dolls?" Lorna laughed at him, causing Bobby to turn red.

"They are not dolls. They are action figures. Not just any, but the limited edition ones!" Bobby yelled at them.

_If they are limited edition, why are they out of the box, mate?_ Jono asked him. Bobby sighed realizing everyone was against him, again. Luckily, he didn't have to explain himself.

**Shadowcat. Colossus. Iceman. Jubilee. Report to my office. **Xavier said to them telepathically. Bobby grabbed his head as did Jubilee.

"When did he start doing that?" Bobby asked the others.

"No idea, but I feel violated." Jubilee complained.

**Classroom**

Warren sat in the empty classroom leaning against the desk. He was starting to cope with his father's death, but it still stung. He had gotten reports that most of the security cameras had been cut. The only few that survived lived short while and showed a man dressed head to toe in a costume. No one was able to get the identity and those who were there did not survive. Most had been sliced through the stomach or shot in the head.

It didn't make sense. Who would kill his father? He thought it was a group of people, but why would they? Most people didn't care if mutants were being turned normal, only the mutants were the ones protesting. It had to be a mutant, but with millions of them out there, how could he find the killer.

'When I do find him, he is dead.' He thought to himself angrily.

"Excuse me." He heard a female voice at the door and turned to see a blond woman standing there. He had never seen her before. "I was wondering if you knew when Xavier was going to finally talk to me? I've been here for a few days and I don't know what I'm supposed to teach." Betsy asked him.

"Ugh, to tell you the truth, I have no idea. I've been gone for a few days myself and have no idea what is going on around here." Warren replied to her. She nodded and was going to turn when he introduced himself. "I'm Warren, also known as Angel."

Betsy turned back to him. "Betsy, sometimes called Psylocke." She introduced herself.

"It's nice to meet you." He said with the first smile on his face since his father died.

"How is this place?" She asked him, trying to start a conversation.

"It's nice here. Very safe as far as I know. the people are nice." Warren answered. 'I guess it's the only place I have.' He thought to himself.

"What do you mean, the only place you have?" Betsy asked him. He looked over at her in shock. "Sorry, I forgot to tell you, I'm a telepath." She told him, answering his confusion.

"My father was murdered recently." Warren answered her.

"I'm so sorry." Betsy bowed her head. She began to feel bad for invading his mind. Her brother always told her not to do it unless necessary.

"It's okay." Warren shrugged his shoulders. He had been getting a lot of that.

"If you are not busy, maybe we could go out to lunch or something. I know when I lost my parents I needed support and a distraction." She offered to him. Warren thought about it for a moment. It didn't sound like a bad idea.

"I might just take you up on that offer." He smiled at her. It wouldn't be bad talking to her. She would be able to relate to what he was going through at the moment and not just feel guilty for him like the others.

**Angel. Report to my office.** He heard Xavier say in his head. Now was not the best time for him. "Maybe, I'll meet you later? I'll take you out to dinner." Warren asked her.

"I look forward to it." Betsy smiled and exited the office.

**Xavier's Office**

"What do ya want, Chuck?" Logan asked Xavier, who was seated behind his desk in the wheelchair. He looked like he normally did. The others had piled into the room. He could smell something was not right. Xavier smelled different and yet familiar at the same time. Whatever it was, he knew it couldn't be good. He kept his thoughts to himself, knowing Xavier had been reading their minds.

"I have found some disturbing news about Magneto." Xavier answered him. Logan had to bite his tongue. Of all the things Xavier had to talk to them about, it was always concerning Magneto it seemed like.

'You got to be kidding me.' Bobby thought. 'When is that guy going to go into a nursing home? Maybe he could get a discount if Xavier went with him. They could be bath buddies.' He felt a sharp pain in his head.

"What's he up ta now?" Logan asked annoyed. They had other things to worry about than this.

"As some of you may or may not have noticed, Rogue has been missing for the last few days. During her travels, she was captured by Magneto. We need to get her back, immediately." Xavier explained to them. This had gotten everyone's attention.

"Crap." Bobby muttered. His thoughts going back to when Rogue told him and John what Magneto did to her and how scared she was. He had almost killed her. Who knew what he had in store for her.

"I told you that there was something wrong with her gone." Jubilee whispered to Kitty.

"Do you know where he is located?" Ororo asked Xavier. She turned to Warren and Piotr. "Make sure the jet is ready, we are going to leave immediately." She ordered.

"Of Magneto or Rogue, no, but I have been able to tack onto one of his men." Xavier told her and began to explain where Magneto was located.

Logan left the room and headed for the jet hanger. 'Don't worry, darlin'. I won't let that psycho get ta ya again.' He thought to himself.

**End of Chapter 14**

**Special Thanks to: laenamoradadeROGUE, tfobmv18, RogueNya, enchantedlight, ffghjyewtg, scarleteyes21, Wanda W, and Special2. **I appreciate you guys taking the time to tell me what you think so far and ways to improve the story. I understand that the story is a bit confusing, hopefully it the next few chapters will clear up some of it.

**A/N:** yeah, I hate writing fight scenes, I'm not good at them. Unfortunately, out of the next 7 chapters, there are 4 or 5 of them *cries* Also, I didn't have Chamber, Polaris, and any of the others cause Xavier doesn't really know them since he's been all jerky lately and won't talk to them. Also, the Peter that ran into John, Wanda, and Pietro was a little reference to Peter Milligan, I despise that man. I really wanna write a fluffy chapter, I wish I could skip all this stuff coming up and get to one. :(

**Next Chapter:** **Come out and Play. **Not going to say, but a lot of revealed next chapter.


	15. Come out and Play!

Finally, the long awaited question is answers: Why is Xavier such a jerk? Though, he moves from jerk to cold hearted jerk in this chapter.

Disclaimer: Do I really need to repeat this? Fine, I own nothing.

**Magneto's Base**

Rogue paced back and forced in her room she was kept in. The room was all metal, with the exception of the bed in the corner. When she had awoken she found a heavy collar around her neck and her powers turned off. She remembered hearing about such collars, but never seen one before. She had pounded on the door and demanded to be released, but no one came.

Finally, she heard the door click and it opened to reveal Magneto. The young woman glared at the old man and balled her hands into fists. "What the hell do ya want?" She yelled at him.

"Simple my dear, I have come to offer you a place that you could learn to control your powers." Magneto suggested to her.

"Did ya forget ta take your medication or did ya forget that ya tried ta kill meh before?" Rogue shouted at him. She thought the other mutant was nuts if he thought he could waltz right in and ask that like he never did anything to her.

"That is in the past. I know how long you've been at Charles' school and have learned nothing. Also how you tried to take the cure and it didn't work. The homo-sapiens continue to punish us because we are superior beings that cannot be stopped. I will ask you one last time Rogue, will you join my Brotherhood?" He asked once more.

"And for the last time, here's my answer." She told him before flipping him off.

"So be it, we will be using you as a test subject for my new device then." Magneto told her before leaving.

"What?" She screamed. She ran at the door and began pounding on it. This couldn't be happening again. It had taken her several months to get over the nightmares she suffered of being held to his last device to turn people into mutants, she couldn't take it again.

She finally gave up and sat down on the bed. She put her hand in her pocket and felt something. She pulled out the Queen of Hearts card Remy had given her when they were on the bus. 'Please get meh outta here, swamp rat.' She thought to herself. Rogue knew he was her only hope since she never told the X-Men where she was going. She hoped he wouldn't let her down like Pulse did.

**X-Mansion**

Xavier wheeled into the jet hanger to find Logan and Piotr working on the jet. Ororo was inside setting the coordinates to Magneto's base. "I thought you left already." Professor Xavier sneered at them. Logan gave a soft growl and glared at Xavier. It wasn't his fault that the jet had not been fueled. It was Hank's job this week, but the blue mutant had left before completing the job.

"We'll be gone in an hour." Logan grumbled.

"And here I thought you actually cared what happened to that girl. I'm sure Magneto is doing terrible things to her again." Xavier said before he rolled out the door. Logan snarled and unsheathed his claws.

"Mr. Logan!" Piotr called to the older man and grabbed his arm. "We don't need a distraction. We must complete this and find Rogue first." The younger man stated.

Logan retracted his claws and glared at the door one last time before turning back to the jet. "What is going on with Professor Xavier? He never acted like that." Piotr asked him.

"I don't know, kid. When we get back, me and Chuck are gonna have a little talk." Logan said to the younger man.

**Magneto's Office**

"I thought you said it was ready to go?" Magneto glared down at Forge as he worked on Magneto's machine.

"It was when I sent it to you, I don't know what happened." Forge told the grey haired man. He opened the back panel and gazed over the wires behind his black goggles. One of the wires was disconnected.

"I've already wasted four people on this. Two died and the other two melted into each other." Magneto barked at him. "I will not affect failure."

"Don't worry, I found the problem. One of the wires was disconnected. It should work now." Forge explained to the older man.

"It better be." Magneto said before turning and leaving. Forge shut the panel and pulled off his goggles revealing black eyes.

"Don't worry, old friend. Everything will go according to plan." Forge said in Charles Xavier's voice.

**Rogue's Cell**

Rogue was becoming extremely restless. She had tried to look for a way to escape, but the room had no window or air vent. She had bruised her knuckles while pounding into the door and walls. No one had visited her since Magneto.

Finally, a click of the door and Pulse entered carrying a sandwich. "I thought you might be hungry." He said to her and handed it to him. Rogue took the sandwich and smashed it in his face.

"Ya got a lot of nerve showin' your face after what ya did." She growled at him.

"I'm sorry. I know what I did was wrong and I shouldn't have betrayed you, but I had my reasons for it." Pulse told her. Rogue rolled her eyes at him. Augustus sighed. There had to be a way to get her attention without making him look like the bad guy she already thought he was. "Magneto is holding my family hostage and he wouldn't release him unless I brought you to him." He made up.

"Ya are lyin' again." Rogue told him. "Logan taught meh out to read a person is they are lyin'. They begin to sweat and talk really fast. They keep shiftin' back and forth and won't make eye contact with ya." She said back to him, feeling even more disgusted with him than she already was.

Pulse kicked himself. He didn't expect her to read him like that, especially since she didn't have her telepath powers due to the collar. "I'm sorry. Rogue, the truth is I really do care for you and I am not making that up." Pulse told her.

"Ah see how much ya care about meh." She muttered and waved her arm. "Ah prefer this over bein' free. Ya know meh so well."

"Listen, we can be together. I'm sorry I didn't tell you the truth, but it was complicated." Pulse moved toward Rogue, who moved away from him. He sighed and held out his bare hand. "Can we please start over? We can be happy and you wouldn't have to worry about your powers." He told her.

"There ain't no startin' over. Ah'm not gonna let ya fool meh again." She shook her head and looked at him with disgust.

"But, Rogue. I really do love you." Pulse plead with her. Rogue stared at him and then turned her head away from him.

"You're honest with those ya love." She told him before turning her face back to him. "Otherwise, it's a gamble."

"But, Rogue." Pulse continued to plead.

"Leave meh alone." Rogue whispered to him. "Ah don't wanna see ya again." Pulse looked down at the floor and began to feel guilty. He didn't hear someone else at the door until he heard a click.

"You heard her." John said before stepping into the room. "Get out." He stared at the blond man. Augustus slowly walked out the door and turned back to look at Rogue one last time before leaving.

"I thought you might need a little help." Pyro stated as he stood in front of Rogue.

"Are ya here as Magneto's lackey or as a friend?" Rogue asked him. She didn't want to talk to him if he was being sent by Magneto.

"A little of both. I knew Magneto would never get you to join him." Pyro said as he put his lighter back into his pocket.

"What is he planning?" Rogue asked him. "He said he had some new device that he was gonna use on meh." Rogue told him.

"I wouldn't worry about that at the moment. From what I heard, it hasn't been working right. I guess it's supposed to turn two mutants into one, combining both their powers. It's pretty useless in my opinion and the guy is starting to lose it." John replied. Rogue shuddered at the thought. She already knew what it was like to have more than one person in her head, the last she needed was more.

"John, ya gotta help meh get outta here." She said to him. "Ah know Magneto's your boss and we are supposed ta be on different sides, but for old times' sake, please."

John thought about it. He knew Magneto would kill him if he found out he let Rogue escape, but at the same time he couldn't let her suffer from the mad man's plans again. "I'll think of something. Maybe when Magneto leaves I can sneak you out and tell him you escaped." He told her.

"Thanks." She hugged him. It was nice being able to talk to him again. It had broken her heart when he left the mansion to join Magneto, but it felt good to know that her old friend was still there.

**Unknown Location**

_Gambit walked down the streets of Cairo taking the same path he did the day before. Two days ago, someone had tried to rob him, but he caught the thief in time. He had been searching for the little thief and waiting for her to make her move. Luckily for him, she had made her move on a wrong target._

"_Give me that!" A man in a suit yelled as he grabbed a white haired little girl of the age of eight by the hair. She dropped the man's wallet and tried to pry his hand loose. _

"_Let me go!" The girl screamed as the man got a better grip on her. _

"_Dere a problem here?" Remy asked the man, casually picking up the man's wallet and handing it over to him. _

"_This little brat tried to rob me. I am calling the cops on her." The man stated. _

"_Sorry about dis, mon ami. Dis my little cousin. I turned my back for a second and she left. So glad y' found her." Remy told the man who released the girl. "C'mon petite, we be leavin' now." He said and began backing away with the girl. _

"_I don't think so, that brat needs to learn her lesson." The man said, refusing to drop the subject. Remy sighed and pulled out a few bills from his pocket and handed it to the man._

"_Dis for y'r troubles." Remy told him. The man took the money. He still planned on calling the cops, but at least he had some extra money to spend. He opened his wallet to find that the money he was holding was originally his. _

"_HEY!" The man shouted, but the two thieves were gone. _

"_Dat was a close one, petite. Y' lucky I was dere to save y'." Gambit told the young girl, who backed away from him. _

"_I don't need your help. I've been taking this street for the past few weeks with no problems." The girl yelled at him. _

"_Looked like a few today. A good thief never gets caught." He told the young girl, who continued to glare at him. "Where are y'r parents?" He asked her. _

"_I don't know." The little girl whispered. "We were on a trip and then in the middle of the night these men grabbed me. I was able to get away, but I don't know where they are." She began to rub her arms as a cold breeze pasted by. Remy took off his coat and wrapped it around the little girl. _

"_Do y' remember where y'r house is or y'r phone number?" He asked her, bending down to her level. The little girl began to cry. _

"_I don't know. When they grabbed me, I heard gun shots and I don't know if they are alive." The little girl continued to cry. Remy hugged the little girl. _

"_Don't worry petite. We'll find out. I'll make sure y'r safe." He promised her. The little girl wiped her eyes and looked at him._

"_Why are you helping me?" She asked him. She had been on the streets for a while and no one had offered to help her that is why she started stealing. _

"_We thieves need to stick together." Remy told her with a soft smile. "I'm Remy LeBeau." He introduced himself._

"_My name is Ororo Munroe. My dad would always call me Storm because every time I get mad it begins to rain or the weather changes." She told him before her stomach began to growl._

"_Nice to meet y', Stormy. Let's get y' somethin' to eat, y' look starved." Remy suggested to her. _

"_Don't call me Stormy!" The little girl protested before she followed him._

Remy opened his eyes and found his head resting face down on a table. He slowly sat up and found his wrists face up locked in metal restraints. A single white bulb hung from the ceiling. He was sitting in a chair and his feet were also shackled to the ground. Immediately, he noticed that his gloves, coat, boots, and belt were gone and he had a collar around his neck. He also had a bandage over his arm that had a bruise forming around it.

'Okay, who's been playin' vampire?' Remy thought to himself he didn't notice the man sitting in the corner watching him.

"Good you are awake." The man stood up and came into the light. "I was hoping it wouldn't be too long, you've been out for seven hours already." The man told him. He had to be over six feet tall with short black hair and goatee. He wore a white jacket over black pants. He had a name badge that read: Dr. Robert Windsor.

"No offense homme. Y'r not de prettiest thing to be wakin' up to." Remy told the stranger. He had never seen this man before and he had always hated doctors.

The man gave a small chuckle. "I see we are going to have so much fun together." Dr. Windsor told the young man. "Of course, the Director will be down to speak with you. After that, we will be running some more tests."

'Oh joy.' Remy thought to himself. "So I gotta ask, I can understand de coat, but why did y' take de boots?" He glared at the older man.

"From what I've read of you, you have a habit of getting out of things. The Director didn't want you to escape too early." Dr. Windsor said before the door opened. "Good evening, Sir."

A figure entered the dark room and stood in the shadows. "Hello, Mr. LeBeau." The Director greeted him. Remy gulped. He recognized the voice instantly. It was the same man that had contacted him for the job in exchange for the information he had been seeking. "I don't believe we have been formally introduced. My name is Malcolm Colcord. I am the director of the new Weapon X facility. Of course, I don't have to explain what we do because I know you are already familiar with it. From what I've read, you used to work for Stryker in stealing files on mutants." Malcolm stated.

Remy glared at the figure. "Thought dey closed down dis shit hole?"

"They did, but thanks to Magneto, people became scared and afraid of mutants even more. A few groups started funding us again. That cure didn't work on mutants, so the only other option for them is to be controlled for our benefit." Malcolm stated, missing the smile that appeared on Dr. Windsor face at the mention of the cure.

Malcolm stepped into the light, finally revealing his face. He had three long scars running down his face. "Now let's get down to business if you don't mind. Why didn't you bring Wolverine?" He snarled.

"Like I told y' over de phone, I got a little distracted, but I was on my way back dere to get him." Remy explained. "Y' told me dat I had three days, which still ain't used up. I could go back dere and bring him to y'."

Malcolm punched him in the right side of the face, causing Remy's head to snap to the left. The punch stung and probably would leave a bruise. Remy glared over at the other man. "Just cause y'r face is all messed up, don't mean ya gotta do de same to me." He snapped at Malcolm.

"You know how I got these scars?" Malcolm asked glaring down at Gambit. "I was a guard during the time Stryker had the procedure on Wolverine. That animal went nuts and began killing everything and sliced my face up. He is an ultimate failure in my opinion. Stryker couldn't control him. That animal needs to be brought down. As soon as we have him, we are going to clone him and start over. It will be the perfect weapon for the government. It will be able to hunt down filth like you." He looked at Remy with disgust.

"I got scars too, but y' don't hear me whinin' about it or tryin' to take over de world." Remy murmured. "Listen, homme. Y' let me go and I show y' where de Wolverine is at. Den y' can give him dat entire speech again, oui?" He tried to suggest to the mad man.

"I sent someone else to do the job." Malcolm told him. "I have no need for you at the moment, so until then, Dr. Windsor can experiment on you." Remy felt his face go pale as the man left the room. He began kicking himself for not bringing in Wolverine when he had the chance.

'Always have to fall for a pretty girl, don't y'.' He chided himself. Dr. Windsor smiled as he approached the restrained mutant again. He pulled out a small metal flashlight from his breast pocket and carried a clip board that he set down on the table in front of him. It had been a while since he had been able to experiment on a mutant since most of them escaped.

"Now, let's first start with those eyes. Very unique," The scientist said as he pulled Remy's head back and forced his right eye open with his hand. He turned the flashlight on and pointed it at the red on black eyes.

Remy jerked away and felt his eyes tear up. They had always been light sensitive and this was hurting worse than getting a burn. "Interesting, I am guessing it hurt?" Dr. Windsor asked as he wrote down what he saw.

"No shit." Remy growled at him as he squeezed his eyes shut. "How about I take dat little flashlight and shove it up y'r ass and ask y' if it hurts."

"How very unfortunate for you, my boy. This will be the least painful thing you will go through." Dr. Windsor stated as he wrote down the information before proceeding onto the next test.

**X-Mansion**

Lorna, Jono, Jubilee, Kitty, and Bobby were sitting on the couch in front of the TV watching their movie. Logan had kicked them out of the hanger, saying they were of no help with the exception of Piotr. He would call them when the jet was ready to go.

"This is so fake. There is no way one guy could trick the mob and steal all their money and come on, a guy in a bat suit?" Kitty complained to the others. It was bad enough she had been forced to go see the movie in the theater with Bobby when it came out five times, but to have to sit through it again was driving her nuts.

"Like having super powers and an old geezer running around trying to destroy all mankind isn't?" Jubilee asked her friend.

"Yeah, but this is real life, this is a movie." Kitty told her friend before they heard the doorbell ring.

_I never heard the call button go off at the gate._ Jono said to the others.

"Don't worry, it's probably just Mr. McCoy. I heard he was coming back either today or tomorrow. Must have lost his key or something." Bobby told the other boy.

"Aren't you going to get that?" Lorna asked him.

"No, this is my favorite part. The Joker is going to tell the story of how he got his scares before he kills the mob dude and has the others fight over who joins him." Bobby explained to the green haired girl while never turning away from the screen.

"Don't worry, I'll get it." Kitty volunteered herself. She couldn't wait until they left for Magneto's hideout. She reached the door and opened it to find a stranger standing there. "Um, can I help you?" She asked hesitantly. She hadn't heard of any new mutants arriving at the school and didn't want to be rude in case he was going to stay there.

"Hi little girl, can Wolverine come out and play?" Deadpool asked Kitty.

**X-Mansion - Basement**

Xavier smiled as he walked out of Cerebro. Everything was working perfectly. Soon everything would be complete. His thoughts were disturbed when he heard someone walking down the hall playing music. It was one of his other students that didn't bother to find out their name. "What are you doing down here?" Xavier snarled, not bothering to hide himself.

The teenager was startled and turned to see the Head Master of the school. He stared in shock in seeing the once wheelchair bound man standing and his eyes were pitch black. "Professor Xavier?" The boy named Evan asked. He had come to the basement to work out in the Danger Room.

Xavier laughed and approached Evan. "Foolish insect." He spoke and Evan felt pain erupt in his mind. He cried out and grabbed his head. "You will refer to me as the Shadow King, though you won't be getting a chance." He smiled before he crushed Evan's mind, causing the teen to fall to the ground dead. He looked down disgusted at the body before leaving the area, not caring who found the body.

**End of Chapter 15**

**Important:** The Shadow King in this story is different than in the comics and cartoon. The best way to describe it is the Shadow King is Xavier's darker mind, like the Phoenix was to Jean. So the Shadow King is not a separate entity, yet, it is Xavier's darkness. Also, Gambit stole information for Weapon X a few years before X1 movie started so he is NOT selling information about the X-Men. Also, Malcolm Colcord and Robert Windsor are names from the comics, I did not make them up.

Special Thanks to: **tfobmv18, laenamoradadeROGUE, August Dawn, alamodie, sofimac16k ffghjyewtg, RogueNya, Wanda W**, and **L1NA3**. I appreciate you taking the time and telling me what you thought of the last chapter and what can be improved.

Next Chapter: **Wolverine vs Deadpool.** Someone Rogue least expects will help her. Um and some more stuff. I've already started the next chapter due to the glitch on the site so it should be up soon.


	16. Wolverine vs Deadpool

As pointed out by a few people, Onslaught is Xavier's darker half. I originally was going to write Onslaught, but after rereading about him, it seemed a bit difficult, so I chickened out and went with Shadow King.

**Disclaimer**: You know the drill. I own NOTHING!

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"Um, guys!" Kitty called to her friends. She had a feeling that Deadpool meant to cause trouble and they didn't have the time for it. "Go get Logan." She told them as Jubilee, Bobby, Lorna, and Jono appeared in the doorway. Jubilee and Jono raced to the elevator to get Logan, while the others stayed behind.

"What's with the Spiderman costume?" Lorna asked as she looked at Deadpool. This guy didn't seem too dangerous. For all she knew, he could have been a friend of Logan's. That was until he took out his gun and aimed it at her.

"You gotta a lot of nerve comparing me to Emoman. I wore this before he was born. I've already warned him if I catch him wearing his knock off outfit of mine again, the old lady will get it." Deadpool warned her. Lorna gulped and looked over at Bobby. She had some experience with her powers, but didn't know if they would stop a bullet in time. The TV was blasting in the background. As soon as the Joker showed up on screen, Deadpool aimed his gun at the TV and shot twice at it.

"Stupid clowns, bringing joy to children. How can they live with themselves!" Deadpool said as he glared at the screen.

"NO!" Bobby yelled as he watched the glass from the screen fall to the ground. Sparks flew off of the TV. "You monster!" He said as he watched in horror as the TV was destroyed.

"Thanks, Bobby. I was almost shot." Lorna grumbled. Bobby glared at Deadpool and turned into his ice form. He walked up to Deadpool, not feeling intimidated by the other man.

"You are so dead." Iceman glared at Deadpool, who looked Bobby up and down.

"You? You're kidding me right." Deadpool tried hard not to laugh as he circled Bobby and put his gun away. "I mean, I've seen GI Joes tougher than you. Before they shrunk the poor guy down. I'm talking original, life like hair, kung fu grip Joe." He said as he came face to face with Iceman. "Come to think of it." He added and brought his hand to his chin as if he was thinking. "I've seen Ken dolls tougher than you. You are more of the: I let Barbie whup me coz I'm a wuss Ken." He finished before he heard the elevator door open.

"Enough." Logan said as he walked in with Jubilee, Piotr, and Jono behind him. "I don't know who ya are, but I ain't got time for ya. Come back some other time." He growled as Bobby went back to normal, still glaring at Deadpool.

"He broke the TV!" Jubilee cried as she looked into the other room.

"Logan! It's been a while. I can't remember the last time I saw you, but then again, neither can you. From what I've heard." Deadpool said as Wolverine glared at him.

'That voice sounds familiar.' He thought to himself. "Who are ya?" He asked.

"It's me, Deadpool. Of course, last time I saw you, I didn't have all of this." Deadpool motioned towards his outfit and mask. "But that's what cancer will do to ya."

"Deadpool? Kinda rhymes with Dead fool?" Logan stated and folded his arms over his chest.

"Yeah, well, Wolverine sort of rhymes with . . . what does that rhyme with?" Deadpool asked and turned to Kitty, who stepped away from him.

"Mr. Logan, we should go. The plane is ready." Piotr told Logan, trying to get the other man away from the new arrival.

"No, you're not going anywhere until you fight me!" Deadpool protested as Logan began to walk away.

"If ya are still here when I come back, sure, but I wouldn't recommend it for your sake." Wolverine warned as he turned away.

"Oh no you don't!" Deadpool said as he grabbed Logan's hand and put it to his face. "Come on, do it. Snikt me!" He yelled.

"What the hell." Logan stared at the other man as if he was crazy. No one ever dared to get near his hands for fear of his claws. 'Maybe he is suicidal.' He thought to himself.

"Psycho." Bobby whispered to Piotr as they backed away.

"I ain't got time for this." Logan growled and yanked his arm away from Deadpool. "We gotta save Rogue." He told the teens. As she headed for the elevator, Kitty approached Deadpool.

"You're lucky, mister. Logan would wipe the floor with you." She taunted him. She didn't feel as intimidated by him as she did before.

"Why you little brat, you. . . hey, have you ever played Street Fighter, little girl?" Deadpool asked and looked down at Kitty. The brown hair girl frowned in confusion. What did that have to do with anything?

"What?" That was all she got to say before Deadpool punched her, sending her into the wall and through it. Logan turned around and saw Kitty being attacked. He growled and stepped forward.

"I win!" Deadpool raised his hands in the air in victory.

"Get Shadowcat and get down stairs." Wolverine ordered the others as he unsheathed his claws.

Deadpool cheered when he saw Wolverine's claws finally appear. "Fighty time, Fighty time." He continued as he pulled out his two swords. "Blood! Blood! Blood!" He aimed his swords at Wolverine.

Piotr made his way into the other room as quickly as possible. He found Kitty getting off the ground. Luckily she had hit the couch before falling to the ground. "Don't move." He told her. He didn't want her to hurt herself anymore than she might have been. He could hear Wolverine and Deadpool fighting in the other room and heard glass shattering. He wanted to protect Kitty in case that man tried to hurt her again.

Piotr carried Kitty in his arms as he entered the elevated and went to the lower basement. "Are you hurt?" He asked his girlfriend with concern. The side of her face was red and purple.

"That guy is an ass!" Kitty grumbled as she had Piotr put her down. She was lucky she had phase through the wall and hit the couch.

"Well, Kitty, this is a lesson to us all: don't taunt the bad guys!" Jubilee lectured her friend, who gave her a dirty look.

"I didn't think he would actually hit a girl. What guy does that?" The brown hair girl said and crossed her arms over her chest.

"He's probably a wimp, that's why he picks on girls." Iceman muttered.

"I dare you to say that to his face." Kitty said to Bobby, who almost laughed at the comment.

"See, that's the difference. I say it when he's not here to beat the crap out of me. You actually said it to his face and look what happened." Bobby commented.

"So, is that what you are going to do when we go against Magneto? Tell him he is a dooty head behind his back?" Jubilee asked him. Bobby rolled his eyes at her.

"Should we check on Mr. Logan?" Piotr asked the others.

_He told us to stay down here._ Jono commented. So far his stay at the mansion had been quiet until this night. _This doesn't happen often, does it?_ He asked Jubilee.

"Afraid so." Jubilee shrugged.

Wolverine had thrown Deadpool out the window before jumping out after him. Deadpool was on his feet in no time and swung his sword up to meet Wolverine's claws. "See this is what I miss. The others are just not as fun as you." Deadpool told him as he brought his other sword to swing at Wolverine's midsection, only to have the mutant head butt him first.

The masked man stepped back a few steps. "None of the others enjoy a good fight. It's always, shut up Wilson. I will rip your throat out if you don't keep quiet." He ran at Wolverine and sliced at Logan's shoulder, pricking his arm. "Red ended up being a big baby and went back to Russia." He commented as he dodged Wolverine's claws.

"Then there's Maverick or Agent Zero, whatever he calls himself these days. Haven't heard from him in a while." Deadpool stopped when Wolverine gutted him in the stomach.

"Don't care, bub. You're done." Wolverine growled and pulled out his claws. Deadpool held the wound and looked down.

"Oh my god, I'm bleeding. Please help me!" He cried before he started laughing. "I can't believe you forgot. If you did, you would have remembered, I got a little healing factor too. All thanks to you." Deadpool said before he pulled out a gun. "Let's see if you still got that metal skull of yours." He said before he shot Wolverine in the head. "Damn." He muttered before he was tackled.

Wolverine kept stabbing Deadpool, only to find it did nothing, but leave holes in his suit. Finally, Deadpool grabbed his other sword and jammed it into Logan's chest, throwing him off of him.

"Why won't you die, ya son of a bitch." Wolverine snarled at Deadpool, who shook his head. He took out the sword and threw it on the ground as the wound began to close up.

"This is supposed to be a school and here you're being a potty mouth. That's not very good Professor." Deadpool taunted. "Of course, that is nothing compared to what you use to call Sabertooth. Man, after he killed your woman you went nuts on him." Wolverine growled at the other man. He had no idea what the man was talking about. "He really enjoyed watching you suffer, but that's what you get when you betray people. That was something you were really good at." Deadpool continued.

"I've heard enough of you." Wolverine snarled and continued his fight with Deadpool.

**Basement**

Ororo checked over Kitty and found she would only suffer from a bruise and small cut from the punch she received earlier. "What are we going to do?" Jubilee asked. None of them had ventured up to see what was going on with Deadpool or Logan.

"I'm going to go up, Colossus and Jubilee, if you could go with me? If you don't feel comfortable, please tell me." She asked them. Both students agreed to go while Lorna, Bobby and Jono stayed with Kitty.

**Yard**

Students watched from their windows as Wolverine and Deadpool continued to fight. "Come on, that was not even close." Deadpool taunted as Wolverine missed him. "You're not even trying anymore. I got a better fight out of Sabertooth a year ago."

Finally, Wolverine grabbed Deadpool around the neck and threw him into a tree and finally knocking him out. Wolverine growled and approached him. "Logan?" Jubilee called from the door. He turned and growled at her. "Um, this can't be good. It's like he doesn't recognize us." Jubilee whispered to Colossus as Storm approached them.

"Mr. Logan?" Piotr called, but it only caused Wolverine to start to approach them. "Shut the door." He ordered to Jubilee who jumped out of the way and helped the bigger mutant hold the door shut. Claws went through the door barely missing Colossus's side.

"Get away from the door." Storm ordered to them. Both students backed away as Wolverine came crashing through. "Logan, I know you are there." She told him, but it didn't seem to have an effect on him.

"Wolvie?" Jubilee asked scared. She had never seen him like this before and it scared her. Logan shook his head as if something was coming back to him. "Come on, we got to save Rogue. She's in trouble." She continued. Logan brought his hands to his head as he felt the rage begin to decrease.

'Now is not the time. We got to save Rogue.' He repeated to himself and his claws retracted.

"Logan?" Ororo approached him. She remained calm, knowing if she acted afraid it might start him back into his feral mood.

"Yeah." He replied. "Sorry, kind of lost it there." He whispered.

"What should we do with him?" Colossus asked, motioning toward the unconscious mercenary in the front yard.

"We'll put him in the holding cell for now. I'll deal with him when we get back. Tell Psylocke he's there. I don't trust Chuck to watch him." Logan told Ororo, who nodded and went to find the telepathic mutant.

Jubilee was the first to approach Deadpool. 'I wonder why he has a mask.' She thought to herself. She knew she shouldn't get too close to the dangerous man after what he did to Kitty, but she had been curious. She lifted up his mask and peaked under. "Oh my god!" She screamed and put the mask down. "This guy is like Freddy Kruger's brother!" She screeched and quickly got away from him.

**In the Dormitory**

"Did you see that?" One student asked another as Logan and Piotr dragged Deadpool away.

"Yeah, just shows this school is not safe." Monet commented to the others.

"I can't believe he was going to attack Jubilee and Piotr. I have class with him on Thursdays." A girl commented sounding afraid.

"What classes? They keep canceling the classes because things keep popping up. What's the point of staying here if we can't even learn how to use our powers? This place is going down the drain." A guy said.

"That's why we are leaving soon." Pietro told the group. He knew better than to say where he was going since the Brotherhood was well known around the school.

Sam walked away from the other students and to his room. Unlike the other students, he liked living at the school. It was nice being with others that could relate to him. He didn't care what they decided to do, he planned on staying at the mansion.

**Basement**

Logan and Piotr dragged the intruder to the holding cells located next to the Danger room. They left specific instructions for no students to go into the basement. "Are you going to be okay?" Storm asked Logan as he sat next to her in the cockpit of the jet. Warren was seated behind them and the teens were in the back.

"I'm fine. I just got a little carried away." Logan told her. Ororo nodded and left it at that. She decided she would confront him later about what happened after they got Rogue back. She just prayed to the goddess that nothing would happen during the mission.

**Unknown Location**

He had been thrown into a small dark cell and the guards took off the collar around his neck. As the guards left, they hit a control panel on the outside of the cell that activated energized bars. Remy sat up and rubbed his neck. It was nice not having the collar repressing his powers anymore. Unfortunately, he was still trapped.

He slowly stood up, his body feeling a bit fatigue after the tests Dr. Windsor performed on him. It was mostly blood and power tests. However, before he had been thrown into the cell, the creepy doctor had injected a needle into his arm with a drug he had been testing. The doctor seemed very excited to test out the effects it would have on him. One thing he had overheard, which disturbed him a bit was that only thirty percent of the test subjects survived after being injected. Some lived only two days while others lived for months before it finally killed them. The other patients that did survive had no effects from the drug what so ever and some had their powers go out of control. Others went insane and were now locked up.

Remy walked over to the bars and ran his finger along side of it, which caused sparks to fly off his fingers. He frowned as he started feeling the wall for a spot he might be able to charge, but was unable to. 'Come on, dere got to be some way to escape.' He thought to himself. He looked down at his arm and found the gauze from earlier was still there. He pulled it off to reveal needle marks and bruises surrounding it. He rolled the gauze into a ball in his hand and charged it before throwing it into the wall.

Gambit covered his face as the gauze exploded, but did nothing to the wall. "Merde." He cursed.

"That won't work, Mr. LeBeau." Dr. Windsor said from behind the bars. Remy glared at the scientist. "Like I said before, we know all of your tricks. Such as getting shot in the leg with a dart so you can charge it or even the latest one from your trip to jail." The scientist smiled at him. Remy narrowed his eyes.

'Wouldn' have ended up dere if it wasn't for dat rotten son of a bitch.' Remy thought to himself.

"Correct me if I am wrong, wasn't it you teamed up with the Wolverine to go after the mutant Sabertooth? Right before you found him, Wolverine betrayed you and you got caught and thrown in prison?" Dr. Windsor asked. He knew he was getting to the red eyed mutant when his fists began to glow.

"I don't know, doc, y' seem to know more than me." Remy said in a low tone. He already disliked the scientist, but now he was moving up Remy's hate list extremely fast.

Dr. Windsor gave a small sinister laugh before he continued. "The one thing I don't understand is why you didn't just bring Wolverine to us in the first place? You obviously hate the man for his betrayal. In return you would have gotten the information of the whereabouts of Victor Creed. Didn't he kill that girl you dated in Paris?"

"Dat none of y'r business." Remy told him. "Don' y' have some other experiment to play with, or maybe go out into de sun." He said to the pale scientist. "Of course, y' probably burst into flames."

"Now why would I want to do that?" Dr. Windsor said as he watched Remy's hands become brighter. "When I find your DNA so interesting and I see I am right." He smiled before he left, getting the information he wanted.

Remy glared at the man as he left. 'What de hell did he mean by dat?' He thought to himself as the glow in his hands died. He went over to the corner of the small cell and sat down. "Dey gonna have to come back in here at some point, den I'll-" He trailed off as he looked down at his arms. The needle marks were now gone and the bruises shrunk to the size of a penny. "Dis is new." He whispered to himself.

**X-Mansion**

Betsy left the cell area and walked down the hallway of the basement to Cerebro. She had wanted to see and know how it worked since she arrived. As she turned the corner, she found a boy lying in the hallway. "Are you alright?" She called out and ran up to the body.

She put her hand on his skin and it felt cold and there was a weak pulse. Betsy placed her hand on Evan's forehead and searched his mind and found no brain waves. She pulled her hand back and stood up. There was no other adult in the school beside Xavier and she had been instructed by the others not to disturb him. 'Great, why did this have to happen when I'm by myself.' She sighed to herself.

**Brotherhood**

Rogue sat in on bed. Every once in a while someone would come in and drop off food. Luckily, Pulse had gotten it through his head that she didn't want to talk to him again and didn't show up. 'Ah wonder if they miss me?' She thought of the mansion. Truthfully, she missed seeing Jubilee and Kitty, even if the other teens could talk her to death. She missed seeing Piotr's drawings. Being able to talk to Logan, who treated her like an adult and not like a little kid.

He had told her that he was more of a friend to her than a father, but it was hard to think that way. Even Jubilee and Kitty looked at him like he was the dad of the school. He was very protective of them. Her thoughts began to drift to Remy. She wondered if he had made it to the mansion yet and if the X-Men would listen to him.

'Of course they would, Miss. Munroe is in charge.' She thought. Rogue took the Queen of Hearts card out from underneath her pillow and looked at it. She traced her finger around the side of the card. Some of the other students that didn't like her always said she was a vampire that didn't have a heart, which is why she was trying to steal other people's lives. It made her feel special when he gave her the card, though she would never tell anyone.

Remy made her feel different. He didn't seem afraid of her, even though he knew what her powers could do. She often wondered why he followed her. 'Ah wonder if he knew we couldn't trust Pulse.' She thought to herself. Gambit made is crystal clear he didn't like the other man. She wondered if he knew something or just plan didn't like him.

The door clicked and she looked at the door to see Avalanche walk in. "What do ya want?" Rogue growled at him as he walked over to her.

"I'm here to free you." He told her and took out a key and unlocked her collar and let it hit the floor.

"Why?" Rogue asked confused. He was one of the people that went with Magneto to free her, why would he help her.

"I can explain or you could run free before Magneto comes to test on you." He answered. "You want to go down the hall and make a left. There's a door that is locked, you'll want to phase through it and turn right. After that you'll be able to find the exit." He informed her.

"Um, okay. Thanks?" She said a little confused still. She began to wonder if this wasn't another trap, but then again if it was he wouldn't have taken off her collar. She left the cell and proceeded down the route he told her.

Avalanche stayed in the cell and his eyes shifted yellow and he shape shifted into Mystique. "I protect my own." She said before leaving.

**X-Mansion**

Hank McCoy opened the front door and found it unusually quiet in the school. He noticed the broken window and mess in the front hallway and sighed. He knew there must have been a fight here. He put down his suitcase and walked down the hallway to Professor Charles Xavier's office. He knocked on the door and there was no reply.

"Professor?" He asked as he opened the door to find no one in the room. "He must be in Cerebro or in his room." He whispered to himself before he shut the door.

"Can I help you?" Betsy asked as she came up behind him. Hank turned and met the blond he had never seen before.

"Yes, I'm Dr. Hank McCoy. I was looking for Professor Xavier to report to him of my conference with Senator Creed." He responded to her.

"I don't know where he is, but I could use your help. I found a student unconscious in the basement and I don't know if I should move him." Betsy told him and ushered him to the elevator.

"Oh my, can you describe what is wrong with him?" Hank asked as they entered the elevator.

"It's extremely weak, but he is cold and I couldn't find any brain waves when I checked his mind. He also looked pale and breathing was slow." Betsy reported to him.

Hank nodded as the elevator went down. 'What is going on around here?' He thought to himself. The school seemed different in the short time he had left. It felt darker and unwelcoming than the friendly place it used to be.

**End of Chapter 16**

AN: Once again, sorry, really bad at fight scenes. Deadpool will be getting a rematch with Wolverine. Also, the scene from when Logan tries to leave till the fighty time blood quote, I got that from a comic page I found on line. Also the part of what Deadpool says about the GI Joe and Barbie, don't know which comic it's from.

Special Thanks to: **tfobmv18, scarleteyes21, RogueNya, PrincessRhia, laenamoradadeROGUE, Hawaiichick, alamodie**, and **L1NA3**. Thank you guys for taking the time to tell me what you think of the story so far.

**Sneak Peek for Chapter 17: **I was wondering what ppl would prefer, a sneak peek or a short summary of the next chapter?

Rogue held her head as she leaned against the wall. "Stop!" She yelled, but the voices continued to their onslaught.

'No one gave you the right to steal my life! You will get yours, Marie! You're a murderer!' The voices chanted in her head, making it hard for her to concentrate. She felt herself phase through the wall and fall to the ground.

"Who are you?" She heard a voice say and looked up to see Scott Summers starring at her.


	17. Break Out

I'm so sorry this took so long to update! My computer was under attack by a virus that tried to destroy it. It's been driving me nuts all week not being able to write. This chapter was really hard to write, I had made little sections, but fitting them together didn't go so well. Also, this is the longest chapter I've ever written for any story!

Side note, I'm the happiest little Gambit fan around. They finally released him saying something from the film! He's finally complete in the movie in my book, as long as they don't kill him I'll be happy even if it is for a minute he appears. Deadpool is another story all together!

Disclaimer: I own nothing; if I did I would sue Marvel for misusing the characters!

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Dr. Robert Windsor sat in his office typing on the computer new information he had gathered on his experiments. To the left of the computer sat a picture of a woman, baby, and himself. He kept the picture there to remind him of what he needed to accomplish. His son, Adam, had died shortly after birth and his wife, Rebecca, couldn't cope with the loss of her son and ended her life. He blamed himself for his son's death knowing if he had been stronger he would have survived. He knew if he could find a way to cure certain diseases and it was held within mutants.

He had dedicated his life to studying mutants and their genes. He was kicked out of his university for the practices he did were unethical, but it did not stop him. Years later, he took a job at Worthington Enterprises as a researcher by the name Dr. Michael Milbury. To his disgust, they were trying to get rid of mutants instead of learning how they worked. He sabotaged their so called 'cure' so it would only work temporarily on mutants, there was no way he would allow these people to destroy his work.

He applied for the Weapon X program knowing it would help him accomplish what he wanted. Once again, he changed his name, this time to Dr. Robert Windsor. He grew into his new identities, but kept the picture to remind him of whom he was and why he was there.

The door to his office swung open and Malcolm Colcord entered with two guards and did not look pleased. He assumed either Deadpool captured Wolverine or did not. "Deadpool failed; do you still have the drug that Stryker used on the mutant that attacked the president?" He asked. Dr. Windsor turned away from the computer and went over to a tiny refrigerator in the corner of the room. He opened the door and took out a small bottle and held it up into the light to see how much liquid was inside.

"Yes, I believe enough for two or three." Dr. Windsor replied to the Director.

"Bring it, we're sending Gambit to do the job instead." He commanded before leaving the room.

Gambit sat inside his cell with his head against the wall. No one had come since the dreadful doctor's last visit. He didn't know how he was to get out of this place, but he knew there had to be a way. He wasn't as concerned for himself as he was for Rogue. He wondered if she was alright and if anything had happened to her.

He couldn't explain it, but there was something about her that drew him to her. When he had been with Bella, it wasn't real love. They had grown up together from six years old and felt more like brother and sister. However, their parents wanted them to marry to unify the Guilds between thieves and assassins. In the end, it cost her life and his home. Then there was Genevieve. He still couldn't to this day figure out if he really did love her or if it was out of guilt. He did have feelings for her, but it didn't feel like love.

With Rogue it was different, he felt something since the day he laid eyes on her. She was beautiful and smart, but seemed afraid and shy. He wanted to break her out of her shell and show her how strong she really was. When he saw how her boyfriend treated her, he wanted to beat Bobby into the ground. How could he cause so much anguish to such a gem?

He gave a small smile as he remembered the first time he saw her eyes. They were more precious than any emerald diamond he ever stole. He could stare at them forever if her little popsicle didn't get in the way every once in a while. Not to mention her being friends with the man he hated and was assigned to capture.

When he first arrived at the mansion and saw Wolverine he expected the other mutant to recognize him. He didn't. Instead he acted like he never met him before. At first Gambit thought he was pretending to not know him just to stab him again. He found out from Storm that Logan had lost his memory and didn't remember anything except what had happened in the past three years. He figured it made his job easier, but it only made it harder when he met Rogue. He figured that she'd hate him for bringing Wolverine back to Weapon X.

He heard footsteps in the hallway and saw guards standing outside his cell with guns pointed at him. He rolled his eyes and sighed. 'Crap.' He thought to himself as his cell began to fill with gas. A few moments later he passed out.

**Magneto's Hideout**

_Logan walked through a casino in Las Vegas. He had gotten information that a man with a Cajun accent could tell him where to find Sabertooth. He was told to be weary of this man because he couldn't be trusted. He looked around and found a man sitting at a table playing cards with three other people. He wore a purple shirt with a black coat over it. He had a cocky smile as he placed his cards down while his brown eyes stared at beaten opponents. "I believe I win again, mon braves." The man said as he took the chips. _

_Two of the men at the table got up and left. Logan took one of their seats and sat across from the man. "Y' wanna play too, old man? Hope y' brought y'r money with y'." The man with the Cajun accent said with a smirk as he dealt the cards. _

"_I ain't here to play games; I came for information on a mutant." Logan said. He noticed the other man got up from the table and left, leaving the two of them alone._

"_Sorry, but I don't deal with mutants. I be here on vacation." The man said and put his cards down. _

"_Don't give me that bullshit, I know who you are, Gambit." Logan snarled. Gambit raised an eyebrow at him and shook his head. "I know ya are the one that supplied Stryker with information on different mutants for Weapon X. I wanna know where Sabertooth is." Gambit rubbed his eyes; it was hard keeping contacts in to hide his eyes._

"_If I knew where he was, I would have killed him myself." Gambit said as he stood up and gathered the cards on the table into one pile. "Now if y' excuse moi, y' late for y'r flight." He said before throwing the cards at Logan and sending the older man through the wall and into an alley. He dusted off his coat and took the money he won and handed it to one of the dealers. "For de mess." _

_He headed for the exit when he heard a SNIKT behind him and turned to find Wolverine standing behind him. "Y' really don't de hint, do y'?" Gambit turned and pulled out more cards. "Y' wanna play, let's play." He held up the cards and took out the contacts he had been wearing to reveal his red on black eyes. _

"_Your funeral, kid. I ain't got time ta mess your face up. I wanna know where ya are keepin' Sabertooth. They said ya would know." Wolverine snarled at him and lunged at Gambit, who threw more exploding cards at him, which he dodged. People began to scattered and ran away from the two mutants. _

_Gambit pulled out another card as Wolverine brought his claws to Gambit's neck and found a sparkling red card against his. "I told y' I don't know where he is. Been lookin' for de batard for a while myself." He replied._

"_Ya know where he might be goin'?" Logan asked, not moving the claws away from Gambit. _

"_Been trackin' him for a few months. Y' know where he might be?" Gambit questioned the other mutant. _

"_Don't know, all I know is he gotta be put down." Wolverine said to Gambit who pulled the card away from him. _

"_Could always use some help on findin' him." Gambit suggested as he put the card into his pocket._

"_Like hell if I'm gonna trust ya." Wolverine glared at Gambit, who smiled and placed his hand on Wolverine's claws and charged them._

"_Never said dat y' had to. We both want Sabertooth dead, oui? We work together till we find him, den go our separate ways." Gambit said to him, he took the charge out of the claws and let the glow die down. _

_Wolverine retracted his claws and stared at Gambit. "For now." Wolverine told him before leaving_

Logan shook off the memory as they arrived at Magneto's hideout. There was no sense in worrying about the memory until they got Rogue.

"This is where Magneto is hiding?" Iceman commented as he looked at the Brotherhood hideout. The place looked run down and white paint was chipping off the sides. "You'd think he'd be able to afford a better place." He said as the group entered through a hole Wolverine made with his claws.

"Well when you try to destroy humanity, it's hard to find people who want to give you money because you're a psycho grandpa. Man, I wonder if he has kids." Jubilee added she received glares from Storm telling her to be quiet.

"Jubilee! Now is not the time." Storm told the younger girl.

"I bet you if he has kids they are psycho's like him." Shadowcat whispered to Jubilee who giggled.

"It's probably that Wanda girl you share a room with. I heard she went nuts because someone touched her black lipstick." Jubilee said and received another glare from Storm.

"Jubilee!" Storm turned to the younger girl again.

"Okay, why does everyone say my name like it means shut up?" Jubilee huffed.

"It shouldn't be that hard ta find them." Wolverine told the group as he caught scent of other mutants in the building.

* * *

Rogue ran down the hallway and turned left like Avalanche told her. **Going to steal more lives?** **You deserve to be tormented for everything you've done.** She heard Emma's voice in her head. Rogue grabbed her head in pain as other voices joins Emma's.

"Why now?" She cried as she heard other people in the building talking. It was making it very hard to concentrate on where she was going. She reached a door and pushed against it with her hand to find it freeze against it. "Not now!" She phased her hand back and left the ice on the door.

**Just give up Rogue. It is for the better. We are finally happy at the mansion now you are gone. **Iceman said in her head. Rogue leaned against the wall and held her head again. "Shut up!" She yelled, but voices of people she absorbed continued to their onslaught.

'No one gave you the right to steal my life! You will get yours, Marie! You're a murderer!' The voices chanted in her head, making it hard for her to concentrate. She felt herself phase through the wall and fall to the ground.

"Who are you?" She heard a voice say and looked up to see Scott Summers starring at her.

"It can't be." Rogue whispered as she looked up at him from the floor. "Mr. Summers?" She asked in astonishment. She pushed the voices back into her head and tried to ignore the rattling of the metal ceiling. 'Just concentrate and stay calm. Ah can't let this get outta control otherwise Magneto will find out Ah escaped.' She thought as she tried to control her powers.

"Do I know you?" Scott asked as he watched the young girl get off the floor. It seemed like she was concentrating on something, but he didn't know what. He looked at the ceiling and noticed that it was moving before it came to a halt. He looked back at Rogue and noticed she seemed like she was sweating. 'She looks familiar.' He thought to himself.

"Yeah, ya were my teacher at the school." Rogue replied to him. There seemed to be something defiantly off about him. 'Well of course somethin' is off, he ain't even supposed ta be alive.' She thought to herself. 'Then again, they never did find his body, only his glasses.'

"Where did I teach at?" He asked her.

'Oh lord; he doesn't remember who he is. Ah bet Magneto told him somethin' different.' She thought to herself, knowing how Magneto liked to twist things around into his favor. By turning the X-Men leader on his team it would give him an advantage. 'Or he was gonna use that device on him.' She thought. "At Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. Ya saved me from a truck that was gonna blow up." She replied to him. She knew she should fill him in on more, but it was more important for them both to get out of Magneto's hideout before the metal controlling mutant found out she escaped.

"Listen, we are in danger. We gotta get outta here before Magneto comes back." She told him. Scott looked at her confused.

"Why would we be worried about him? Magneto helps mutants." Scott stated. Rogue sighed. She was right, Magneto did lie to him.

"If he cares about mutant safety, why the hell would he tie me up on top of the statue of liberty and almost killed me. He let tons of mutants get slaughtered. He's even told me that he's plannin' on usin' another device on me because I refuse to join him. He's been manipulatin' ya and gonna use ya if ya don't move it!" Rogue said to him and went back to the door. The metal door swung open and the door knob fell off. 'Oh sure, now they are useful.' She thought to herself.

**You won't get away.** She heard Magneto's voice say in her head. Rogue grounded her teeth together. 'Shut up! All of you!' She shouted in her head.

"How do I know you're not trying to lead me into a trap?" Cyclops asked her, still not trusting her.

"Ah'm twenty years old and do Ah look like a psychopath who wants world domination. Ah know it might be hard for ya ta trust me because ya don't remember, but ya don't belong here. Ya belong at the mansion where ya lived with Miss. Grey." She said trying to get his attention. She hoped by mentioning Jean it would help. "Listen, Ah owe ya for savin' my life. Either take it or leave it." Rogue told him.

Scott hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Alright." He said before following her out of the room. They heard a loud noise coming from the other end of the hallway. "What is that?"

"Ah don't know if Ah wanna find out." Rogue replied before they heard a girl scream and saw Shadowcat phase through the wall and stand in front of them. They heard a loud thud behind the wall.

"I am so not having a good week!" Shadowcat yelled and then noticed Rogue and Cyclops standing in front of her. "Oh my god!" Shadowcat squeaked before hugging Rogue. "You're alright." She said before turning to Cyclops. "Like oh my god, Mr. Summers, you're alive!" She stared at her thought to be dead teacher. 'Wait till the others see this!' She thought to herself. 'Then again, Miss. Grey didn't die either before, so coming back from the dead isn't really new.'

"What's goin' on?" Rogue asked her.

"We came here to rescue you and we found the Brotherhood and started fighting them. Since when did Magneto have more men? That one jerk on his team tried to kill me. The one with the stupid bowl on his head!" She huffed as she dragged them through the hallway back to the fight.

* * *

"So this is round two?" Pyro smirked as Iceman stood in front of him and took his ice form.

"Yeah and it's going to end the same as it did last time." Iceman yelled as sent a beam of ice at Pyro, who pulled out his lighter and triggered a flame at Iceman.

Angel flew above and picked up Revanche who was attacking Storm and Colossus. The purple haired woman pulled out a blade from her belt and stabbed him in the left wing. "Agh!" He cried in pain and felt himself going down. He dropped Revanche who fell and landed on her feet.

"Angel! Are you alright?" Jubilee asked as she ran to her injured teammate.

"I'll be fine." Angel responded as he tried to spread his left wing and felt pain shoot through it.

"What's the matter, pretty boy? Can't fly?" Blob laughed as he approached with Arclight. The black hair woman smiled before she clapped her hands together and sent a shockwave toward the two X-Men sending them to the ground. "Let's see you fly now!" He said before jumping on Angel's right wing. The room shook as Blob broke Angel's wing and the blond haired man cried out in even more pain.

"Get off him, lardo!" Jubilee shouted and sent puffs of fireworks in the large mutants face causing him to step off of Angel's wing.

"Angel?" Jubilee ran to him. His right wing was bleeding and disfigured. She looked around; she knew she would need help in transferring him. She also had to protect him. "Colossus!" She called to the Russian mutant for help. She would have called for Wolverine, but he was fighting Mystique. "We need to get him back to the jet." She told him.

"You're not going anywhere!" Arclight snarled as she approached them. "I'm going to rip off the rest of his sissy wings, then your face."

"I don't think so, bitch." Jubilee stood over Angel, as did Colossus.

_**Only one to die today is you.**_The two X-Men heard from behind them and turned to see Charles Xavier standing behind them. His black eyes glaring at Arclight.

"HOLY SHIT!" Jubilee shouted, catching everyone in the room's attention. She covered her mouth. She didn't intend on shouting, but it wasn't everyday you saw a paralyzed man standing.

Magneto stopped his fight with Storm and stared at his old friend. 'This is impossible.' He thought to himself as he watched Xavier raise his hand and saw Arclight scream in pain before falling unconscious. Charles turned his attention to Magneto and smirked.

_**What's the matter, Erik? You look so lost. **_Xavier said as he approached him. He didn't notice Forge walking over to his device and activating it.

"Who are you? You're not Charles." Magneto demanded. He didn't want to, but if needed, he would destroy his old friend.

_**You're right, I'm not. I'm more powerful and soon you're powers will join mine.**_ Xavier laughed as Magneto looked at him for a moment before his eyes grew wide. He looked over at Forge, who activated the device and hit him and Xavier with it. Magneto screamed as he felt his powers being sucked out of him and transferred to Xavier.

"What the hell?" Wolverine stared in shock and looked over at Mystique who was smiling. "Ya know about this?" He growled at her.

Magneto finally fell to the ground and Xavier began to float in the air. "Who the hell are you?" Wolverine snarled at Xavier. He had no idea how the older man arrived at the hideout with them. There was no way he could have been on the jet without him knowing.

_**I am your superior, but you may call me Shadow King.**_ He grinned before sending a psychic blast at the X-Men and Brotherhood before disappearing.

Storm slowly stood up and looked over at Wolverine. "We were set up." She whispered. She looked over at Forge who lay unconscious on the ground. 'He planned this entire thing.' She shook her head.

"Ya alright, Ro-"Wolverine asked before he was blasted by a red beam and sent into the wall. He hit the ground with a thud and looked over to see Cyclops standing next to Rogue and Shadowcat.

"You!" Cyclops yelled and shot another blast at him, but he moved out of the way before it hit him.

"Cyclops!" Shadowcat grabbed his arm. "He's a friend, not an enemy." She tried to persuade him, but he didn't believe her. He may not have remembered all of himself, but he remembered Wolverine flirting with Jean.

"How is this possible?" Storm stared in shock at Cyclops. They had searched the area and found nothing, but his glasses. They had assumed his body had been destroyed like Xavier's had been.

"I really ain't in the mood fer this." Wolverine growled as Cyclops sent another blast at him. He dodged, but it nicked his shoulder. "Fine, let's go, pretty boy." He snarled and raised his claws.

"Wolverine!" Storm yelled and slowly approached Cyclops. He looked over at her. She seemed very familiar to him. He began to have flashes of meeting her for the first time when she arrived at the mansion.

"Storm?" Scott whispered as he began to regain more memory. He looked over at Wolverine, who glared at him. He felt so confused at the moment on what was going on. He knew from his memories he could trust Storm, but he felt he couldn't trust Wolverine.

"Magneto was trickin' him." Rogue explained to the others.

"Hey, can we have some help!" Jubilee shouted to them. Since it seemed like no one was fighting anymore, it was best to get Angel to the jet and back to the mansion as soon as possible. Wolverine made his way over to her before stopping off by Rogue.

"Don't ever scare us like that again." He told Rogue, who felt guilty. She didn't mean to upset him.

"Man, you're not having a good week, are you? First you get attacked by that psycho masked guy, now Cyclops shoots at you." Jubilee joked to Wolverine.

"Anyone else attacks me; I'll cut their head off." Wolverine grumbled. "Good ta have ya back, kid." He told Rogue before leaving to help Colossus bring Angel to the jet.

Erik Lehnsherr opened his eyes and noticed the X-Men and Brotherhood standing around looking at where Xavier once stood. He slowly got to his feet and tried to command his powers to rip the metal off of the building and whip it at the X-Men, but nothing happened. He raised his hand again and the results stayed the same.

"Mystique! Pyro!" Erik yelled, getting their attention. The two mutants looked at one another with a smirk on their face. Mystique casually walked up to Erik and runs a hand alongside his face.

"I'm sorry Erik, it's so unfortunate what has happened. You know we only help mutants." She sighed and shook her head. "And here you were once so handsome." She turned away from the former mutant who had a shocked expression on his face. "Let's go, we have no business here." She told the Brotherhood as she left. The others followed behind her. Pyro turned to Bobby and saluted him.

"Till next time." John said before leaving. Iceman glared as he watched Pyro leave. Pulse stayed behind and watched Rogue who glared at him.

"Go." She told him. Pulse sadly nodded and followed the Brotherhood. Jubilee made her way over to Rogue and Shadowcat.

"Who was that?" Jubilee asked Rogue.

"No one." Rogue replied. She didn't want to explain the situation with Pulse and how he betrayed and pretended to love her. Shadowcat kept her mouth shut. They had run into the blond mutant on their way to the battle and he grabbed Rogue's arm and wasn't absorbed. She had pushed him away and they continued on.

"Now then." Shadowcat said as she turned Rogue and hugged the other girl while avoiding skin contact. "We've missed you!"

"Yeah!" Jubilee added as she joined in the hug. Rogue was a bit taken back. She didn't think they would miss her this much. "It hasn't been the same without you around!"

Iceman stood a distance between the three girls and watched them. When they separated Jubilee turned and looked at him. "Don't you have something to say? Or do we need to kick your butt!" She glared at him.

Bobby slowly made his way over to the girls, noticing Rogue stare at him. He knew he had lost her trust, but wanted to rebuild it. "Rogue, I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry. I didn't mean to push you away and ignore you." He told her.

"It took ya that long ta realize what ya were doin'?" Rogue asked him.

"We had to knock some sense into him, well tried. That new kid, Sam, he finally got through to him." Jubilee told her.

"And I never wanted to date him." Shadowcat explained to Rogue. "I really do think of him more as a friend, I've had my eyes on Piotr and guess what? We're dating now." Shadowcat told her excitedly. Jubilee rolled her eyes at the brown haired girl.

"Listen, I can understand if you don't want us to be together after what I did, but I do want to be friend with you." Bobby said to Rogue. She could tell by the sound of his voice he was being sincere. Truthfully, she didn't want to date him anymore. It seemed like they had been closer when they were just friends than boyfriend and girlfriend.

"Ah suppose it would be best if we went our separate ways, but Ah would like ta still be friends." Rogue told him. She surprised herself. She had thought of this moment for a long time and never pictured this. She always pictured herself yelling at him and telling him that she deserved better and if he wasn't always looking at someone else they would have stood a chance. 'He grew up a bit.' She thought to herself.

Bobby smiled and gave her a small friendly hug. "It's good to have you back." He whispered to her.

"Thanks." Rogue smiled and looked around for someone. "Where's Gambit?" She asked them. The others looked at each other before turning back to her.

"We thought he was with you." Storm replied to her. She had talked to Cyclops and explained everything she knew of what had happened to him before his disappearance. She had hoped by bringing him to the mansion it would restart his memory better.

"He was, and then we got separated when Magneto attacked us. Ah thought he told ya guys that Ah was here." Rogue told them. 'Where the hell is he?' She thought to herself.

"No, Professor Xavier said Magneto captured you." Iceman explained to her.

"I was wondering, since Professor Xavier went nuts, does that mean I no longer have the detention he assigned me?" Shadowcat asked Storm as they left Magneto's hideout, leaving the de-powered man behind.

**Unknown Location**

"_Ya sure this is the place?" Logan asked Gambit as they arrived at the building. Gambit rolled his eyes at the older mutant and pulled out his bo staff and extended it. They had been traveling together for the past few months._

"_From de reports around town, dey said he's been around killin' people." Gambit replied to him. He had waited a long time to get revenge on Sabertooth for killing Genevieve and his brother. Finally, they would be avenged. "Dis where we part ways, mon ami. First one to Creed gets to kill him." He told Logan before turning around to face the building. _

"_That ain't gonna happen." Wolverine told him as he put his hand on Gambit's back. Remy froze and felt a sharp pain enter his side. He looked down to see Wolverine's middle claw through his stomach. "I gotta do this alone. Sorry, kid." He said before retracting the claw. _

_Gambit's hand went over the wound before he fell to his knees. He glared at Wolverine he walked ahead and into the building. "Fils de pute." Remy muttered before falling unconscious from the blood loss. _

_Later, he would wake up in the hospital wing of a mutant prison. He thought of nothing, but getting revenge on Wolverine. He denied him his revenge for his own purpose. He hadn't heard what happened to either Wolverine or Sabertooth, but planned on escaping and finding out. Eventually, he made it out of the hospital wing and to a prison cell where he met his cell mate, who would help him escape. _

Gambit opened his eyes and found himself back in the room he was first brought into.. Malcolm Colcord was standing in the room waiting for him to awaken. He sneered as he saw Dr. Windsor was in the corner of the room as well.

"Nice of you to join us, again." Malcolm said as he stood in front of the bound mutant.

"Can't say de same." Gambit murmured and looked around the room.

"I have some good news for you, since Deadpool has failed to capture Wolverine, we will be sending you." Malcolm told Gambit.

"I could have done dat a few days ago, but y' wasted all dis time." Gambit said to him as he tried to move his arms. "Now y' just release me, I go get him for y' and y' can do whatever to him." Malcolm smiled and turned to Dr. Windsor who pulled out a needle.

"Unfortunately, you cannot be trusted. So, to make sure you don't get distracted again, we have something that should help." Malcolm told him as Dr. Windsor approached Gambit from behind and shoved his head into the table and held it there. He stuck the needle into the back of his neck and injected the drug into him.

Malcolm turned to his guards. "Make sure he arrives at the school unnoticed. I don't want failure this time." He demanded.

**End of Chapter 17**

**A/N:** I'm not very happy with the Magneto hideout part; I'm probably going to revise that entire scene a bit later. I feel bad for what I did to Angel, but it serves a purpose, I'm not just being mean to him. **Also, while going back, I forgot to write a scene, Pulse was supposed to meet Shadowcat and Cyclops, but I couldn't fit it in, so I wrote one sentence in there stating they ran into him and he grabbed her arms, deactivating her powers (for a while and the voices). **Once again, sorry for the chapter. I was trying something new and it ended up being a bit harder to write than I thought.

**Character Info**: thought I should give some information for those who don't know much about Deadpool. As he has stated he is a mercenary that worked for Weapon X and knew Wolverine. He is one of the few characters in all comics that knows he is a comic book character. As an example, someone ran up to him and said, hey when was the last time I saw you; he replied with the comic and issue number. Any other addition info I can think of I'll add later, I'll try doing this for other characters that aren't known to the movie verse as well. Also, I posted a picture of Deadpool in my profile so you can have a visual image of him; I know I am bad in description.

Special Thanks: **tfobmb18, laenamoradadeROGUE, alamodie, 4Rogue, Hawaiichick**, and **Star-of-Chaos. **Thank you guys for reviewing and telling me your thoughts and what can be improved. I try to make every improvement ppl point out, its hard for certain parts because I don't know what to write in that space. I promise the next chapter won't be so sloppy.

**Sneak Peak:**

"I can't believe they let you back here. This just shows what a crappy place this is." Monet rolled her eyes at Rogue as the others around her laughed.

"Why don't you shut your face before Ah shut it for ya!" Rogue told the other girl, who looked surprised before she laughed at Rogue.

"Aw look who finally grew a backbone." Monet laughed before she shoved Rogue into the wall. "I'll have fun breaking it."


	18. Wrongful Accusation

Um don't know what to say here, so, hope you enjoy the chapter.

Disclaimer: Let's see, I own this computer, a TV, but I don't own any of the characters in this story.

* * *

Wanda stood outside of the school and had her cell phone to her ear. To her left was Pietro who had his arms folded across his chest. The phone rang twice before someone finally picked up. "Hello?" She heard John say on the other line. A small smile appeared on her face.

"Hey, it's Wanda. We met at the mall and you said me and my brother could join your group? Can we still take you up on that offer? I've had it with this place. If I stay here one more day, I'll bring the entire building down." Wanda told John.

"Of course, there is plenty of room for a smoking hot babe like you." John said on the other line.

"What?" She growled into the phone.

"Um, I mean, we got a new leader and we're looking for new recruits. Besides, we need more girls. The one we had died, another that is snippy, and the other is the leader and is a bit old." John replied to her.

"Fine, we'll meet you at the mall at seven and you can show us where your group is located." Wanda told him before shutting the cell phone. She turned to her brother who had been waiting for her reply. "We're in. Got everything packed?" She asked him.

"I had it packed yesterday. You think this Brotherhood will help?"The white haired teen asked his sister. She shrugged.

"Can't be any worse than here. At least we won't see that green haired bitch again." Wanda snarled before heading back into the school.

**Lower Basement**

Piotr and Logan carried Warren to the lab and set him down on a bed. "It'll be alright, wings." Logan told the blond haired mutant as Hank pulled the curtain back from the other bed he had been preoccupied with.

"Oh my stars and garters, what happened to him?" Hank asked as he moved away from Evan and to examine Warren.

"They injured his wings, can ya repair it." Logan asked Hank who was looking over the left wing.

"They need to be removed." Warren said to them as he winced when Hank touched the wing.

"Are you sure? They might not grow back." Hank replied to him. Warren shook his head and bit his lip.

"I've cut them off before and they always grow back. Please, just do it. I won't be able to fly with them how they are right now." Warren pleads to Hank, who nodded.

"Let me just check the other wing first. I don't want to cut them both off if one can be saved." Hank insisted. He didn't like the thought of removing a part from a body if it could be saved, even if the patient wanted it gone.

"No, they need to go! Please!" Warren continued. Hank sighed and finally agreed.

"Very well, Logan, could you please get Ororo to assist me." Hank asked Logan, who nodded. As Logan left the room Piotr followed him out.

"He'll be alright, won't he?" Piotr asked Logan.

"Yeah, kid. Ya heard wings. They've come off before and come back." Logan responded and stopped off at the cell area where Betsy and Ororo were trying to get information out of Deadpool.

"Now who are you and why did you come here?" Ororo questioned the captive sitting in the cell.

"Let's see, my name is Deadpool. I was banned from my home in the underworld by my father Odin. Later I was bit by a vampire and had radioactive waste dumped into my eyes. And to make matters worse, my mutant ability to control weather activated just as I was hit by a blast of gamma radiation." Deadpool explained. Ororo turned and looked at Betsy.

"Nah, I'm just messing with you. I got this way by volunteering for the Weapon X program. They promised to cure my cancer. And they cured it all right, by giving me an outrageous healing factor. There were some other issues, but we will not get into those at the moment until I have killed the man who wrote it. Anyways, then they labeled me a psychotic and tossed me into a prison lab. So I escaped and became what some people might call a 'mercenary'. I prefer the title cleaner of the gene pool." Deadpool said to them.

"Is any of this true?" Ororo asked Betsy, who shook her head.

"I think he is telling half of the truth, but I am afraid to look into his mind. I am afraid what it might do to me." Betsy replied to the white haired woman.

"Ororo, Hank wants ya." Logan told the white haired woman. She gave him a small and walked past him. "Also, I'd like ta talk ta ya later." He added quietly.

"Alright." She said before giving him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Aw, how sweet. I want to puke and throw in her hair." Deadpool gagged. Logan growled at him. "Anytime you're ready for round two, so am I."

"That might be comin' sooner than ya think, bub." Logan snarled at him. Deadpool put a hand on his heart as Logan turned to leave.

"James!" Deadpool called, causing Logan to stop and turn back to the insane man. "I kill you." He said in a loving voice.

Logan left the room in a hurry, leaving Betsy alone with the masked man. "I'm out of here." Betsy said before leaving the room as well.

"I'm bored! I need someone to talk to! Can you put someone in the cell next to me?" Deadpool yelled after them. "This sucks, I finally get a cameo in something and I am trapped here. I wonder if I change my name to Wolverine the second I'll be more popular. I mean the guy got four movies to himself, he got a crappy little cartoon Wolverine and the X-Men, and I don't know how many series to himself in the comics not to mention being on every team. What do I get? I got one appearance in HIS movie and in the Hulk vs. Wolverine. I need a new agent."

**Dormitory**

Kitty and Jubilee dragged Rogue through the hallway. "As you can see, little has changed. Except that bitch Emma left. She said she found some rich place called the Hellfire Club. I say good riddance." Jubilee told Rogue.

"You got to meet Lorna, she's my new roommate. Hopefully, Wanda is not there. She is a pain in the ass and the incarnation of evil. I swear she bitches over everything. "Kitty explained to Rogue, who gave a small smile.

"By the way, where did ya get that bruise from?" Rogue asked the brown haired girl, who stopped walking.

"This jerk, he's being held in the cell area. He came in and wanted to pick a fight with Logan, and like I told him to butt off and he punched me." Kitty whined as she ran her hand over the bruise.

"Yeah, apparently, we're not allowed to taunt villains." Jubilee told Rogue as if it was new information.

"No duh, Ah thought everyone knew that." Rogue replied as Kitty shot her a dirty look.

"Okay, let's drop this NOW!" Kitty yelled as they entered her room. Lorna was lying on her bed reading a book. She lowered it and gave a small wave to her friends.

"Good to see you guys got back in one piece." Lorna said as she sat up in her bed and put the book on her nightstand.

"Yeah, except Mr. Worthington is hurt. Also Professor Xavier went psycho and took Magneto's powers and disappeared. Miss. Munroe said there is going to be a meeting discussing it after she debriefs Mr. Summers and Mr. Worthington is patched up." Jubilee explained to the green haired girl. "Oh by the way, this is Rogue." She introduced.

"Nice ta meet ya." Rogue said as Lorna got up and shook her hand.

"You too, I've heard a lot about you. All the good, all the bad I just ignore." Lorna told her.

"What have they been sayin' about me?" Rogue asked Lorna, who shrugged. Kitty looks at Jubilee in worry. They were afraid Rogue might run off again if someone said something offensive to her.

"Some said you are a vampire that goes around stealing people's lives and stuff like that. They made you sound like some monster, but I didn't believe them. I think a lot of the kids around here are spoiled and need to be taught a lesson." Lorna replied. Rogue tucked a loose strand of white hair behind her ear.

"They are idiots; they don't know what they are talking about. They said I was yippy." Kitty told Rogue, trying to make her feel better.

"Ah don't care what they say about me, they can kiss my ass for all Ah care." Rogue said to her.

"Oh, I got to introduce you to Jono, he's a sweet heart!" Jubilee said as she grabbed Rogue's arm and dragged her out of the room and down to the boy's dorm.

"She doesn't seem like how you described. You said she was quiet and shy." Lorna commented to Kitty.

"She was. Anytime someone said anything mean to her or about her, she would leave the room and hide. Maybe getting out of here for a while was the best thing for her." Kitty replied. She was happy to see that it didn't bother Rogue what others were saying about her. She knew it would be better if those who were being mean just left, but at least Rogue could now deal with it.

"I like her, she seems nice. Much better than Wanda who flipped on me because I came an inch to close to her bed." Lorna said to Kitty, who rolled her eyes. "That reminds me, a lot of the students saw Mr. Logan fighting that red masked guy. I guess a lot of them are leaving because they don't feel safe and because the classes keep getting canceled."

"Just wonderful." Kitty sighed. Things were defiantly falling apart since Professor Xavier was no longer himself.

**Storm's Office**

Ororo stepped into her office after helping Hank remove Warren's wings. At the moment, the blond mutant was still knocked out from the drugs, but had Betsy sitting next to him. Hank said that Warren should be able to move around in a day or so. As for Evan, Hank had no idea what could have happened to the student. She explained to him what the Shadow King had done to one of the mutants in the Brotherhood and it was possibly him.

She sighed knowing she would have to make a phone call to Evan's parents and explain to them that their son was now brain dead with no chance of waking up. The school had been getting bad publicity lately and this wouldn't help. She had gotten six notices from students who were leaving the school that week.

Ororo closed the door behind her and saw Logan standing behind her desk waiting for her. "Hey, darlin'." He gave a small smile, but had a sad expression on his face.

"Are you alright?" Ororo asked as she walked up to him and gave him a hug.

"No, nothin's gonna be alright." He replied to her and looked down at her. He swallowed and prepared himself for what he had to do. "Listen, I don't know what I did in my past, but apparently there is more than that Weapon X place that I pissed off. When I fought that freak downstairs, he told me that I betrayed a bunch of people and they would come after me." He told her.

"He said that I was with some woman before she got killed because of me. I don't want the same to happen to you." He explained to her. Ororo felt her eyes begin to water, but didn't let any tears fall from her eyes. Instead, the sky outside began to get darker and it began to rain.

"You're breaking up with me?" She asked.

"I'm sorry. Maybe sometime in the future we can have somethin', but for now, I don't even trust myself." Logan said to her. He took her hand in his. "I love ya, Ro and I don't want nothin' ta happen ta ya. I could never forgive myself."

"It's okay." Ororo replied and looked away. She felt her heart breaking on the inside.

"Listen, I-" He began to say, but she put two fingers over his mouth.

"You don't have to explain anything to me. I understand. I have a lot of work I need to get done because the professor is no longer here." Ororo told him. Logan nodded before leaving the room.

Ororo sat down at her desk and stared at the papers in front of her. Finally, the tears came from her eyes and she wept.

Logan could hear Storm crying through the door and shut his eyes. He felt bad for doing it, but it was for the best. "Hey!" He heard Scott say as he approached Logan. He still didn't trust Logan, but was now beginning to believe everything Magneto had told him was a lie. "I had a quick question."

"What's that, Cyke?" Logan asked he really didn't want to talk to the former leader. He wanted to be left alone.

"Why is there a grave stone with my name on it?" Scott asked him.

'Oh crap, maybe we should have taken that down.' Logan thought to himself. "We thought ya were dead. The only thing we found of ya were yer glasses." He explained. He noticed Bobby coming down the hall and grabbed the teenager. "He can fill ya in more on it."

"What?" Bobby asked as Logan left. "Um, what?" He asked again and looked at Scott.

**Girl's Dorm**

"Aren't you coming to dinner?" Jubilee asked Rogue as her and Jono made their way for the stairs.

"Ah'll be down in a few minutes. Ah just want ta get somethin'." Rogue told her as she walked down the hallway.

"You better be down in five minutes, chica!" Jubilee yelled after her. Rogue smiled and shook her head. She never thought she was say this, but it felt nice to be back at the school. She took off her gloves and shook her sweaty hands. She had another pair that weren't so warm in her room and wanted to grab them.

"Alright, mother." Rogue yelled down the hall back to Jubilee. She was about to reach her room when she noticed Monet and three other students were standing in front of her door. There was one other girl and two guys she didn't recognize. "Excuse me." She said as one of the students was blocking the way.

"Well, well, look who came crawling back. What, no one else would take you in?" Monet sneered. "Just when I thought this place was becoming decent. I can't believe they let you back here. This just shows what a crappy place this is." Monet rolled her eyes at Rogue as the others around her laughed.

"Why don't you shut your face before Ah shut it for ya!" Rogue told the other girl, who looked surprised before she laughed at Rogue.

"Aw look who finally grew a backbone." Monet laughed before she shoved Rogue into the wall. "I'll have fun breaking it."

Rogue hit the wall harm and turned around. To her right was her door. She thought about going in and going through the window to avoid the other teens. 'If Ah do that, that'll never leave me alone.' She thought to herself as she walked back over to Monet.

"Ah was bein' polite earlier, now Ah'm not gonna be such a lady." Rogue said as she froze Monet's feet to the floor.

"Hey, why don't you play fair?" The one boy said as he shoved Rogue into the other guy.

"Ya the one pickin' on a girl!" Rogue said as she punched the guy in the stomach.

"Get away!" The other girl yelled and telekinetically pushed Rogue backwards and into Monet. Rogue fell into Monet and sent both girls crashing to the floor, Rogue's arm touching Monet's.

"Get off me!" Monet screamed as she felt herself being absorbed. Rogue tried to pull her arm away, but found her hand frozen to the floor, locking the connection in place.

"Ah'm tryin'!" Rogue yelled as Monet's memories and powers drained into her. She saw all of Monet's childhood and growing up with her family all the way until she came to the mansion.

"Get her off of her!" The guy yelled to the other.

"Are you kidding? I'm not touching her!" The other guy replied. Suddenly, both girls on the floor became still. "Quick, get Monet away from that skunk bitch." He told the girl, who nodded. She broke the ice with her telekinesis and threw Rogue off of Monet.

"Why don't you throw her out the window while you're at it?" The first guy mentioned.

"Get away from her!" Piotr yelled at the three teens. His metal armor came around his body and he bent down next to Rogue.

"She started it. Now look what she did to Monet." The girl said as she reached down and checked Monet's wrist. The other girl was still alive, but unconscious.

Piotr picked Rogue up and glared at the three teens. "For your sake, comrades, I'd find a new place to stay before Mr. Logan finds out what happened here." He warned them before carrying Rogue off to the Med Lab.

"Piotr?" Kitty called running down the hallway. She was in shock seeing him carry Rogue. "Oh my god, what happened?" She asked him, never taking her eyes off of her friend.

"They attacked her and pushed her into Monet. She accidently absorbed her." Piotr explained.

"I got to tell the others." Kitty told him as she ran down the stairs to tell Jubilee and the others what had happened to their friend. She was scared seeing Rogue unconscious after having absorbed someone.

**Midnight**

Jubilee, Kitty, Lorna, Bobby, Piotr, and Jono were forced to leave the Med Lab and get some rest. Neither Rogue nor Monet woke up. Hank had checked over both girls and had them in beds next to each other.

The three teens had brought Monet down to the Med Lab after Piotr left and claimed Rogue attacked Monet and wanted to steal her powers. They soon were running out of the room when Logan said he could smell the lie on each of them.

"I can't believe this." Kitty cried as Piotr hugged her. All of them were taking the elevator up to the dormitory. "She is gone for all this time and is fine. What finally gets her is being back here with us."

Jubilee wiped the tears from her eyes. "No, it's those idiots fault! They always pick on everyone and now Rogue has to suffer because of it!" Jubilee replied.

"Do you think she'll wake up?" Lorna whispered to Bobby.

"Hank says he doesn't know. He said tomorrow he'll have Betsy try to go into her mind and see what's going on." He replied. "The worst part is Monet will be fine. She's just unconscious right now. So she gets away with it and Rogue, who knows what's going to happen with her."

_She's in there_ Jono told the group. _I touched the inside of her mind and she's there, but it's like she's lost. It was kind of confusing in her head. There were so many voices it was hard to find her._

They reached the top floor and the elevator opened. Each of them said good night before heading into their rooms. Piotr, Bobby, and Jono walked to the boy's hallway and saw two of the guys that attacked Rogue.

"She got what she deserved." The one boy said to the three. Bobby balled his hand into a fist and punched the boy in the face.

"What's your problem? You're not dating her anymore." The other boy said as he helped his friend.

"We may not be dating anymore, but she is still my friend and no one messes with my friends, asshole." Bobby told the boy before going into his room.

"You got what you deserved." Piotr told the boy. He had been made fun of by the group as well, but they didn't dare say it to his face.

**Med Lab**

Logan sat in the chair next to Rogue. A sheet covered her hand and he placed his on top of it. "I'm sorry, kid." He whispered to her. No one messed with one of his girls and got away with it. He wanted to beat the crap out of the three teens, but Betsy and Hank held him back.

Ororo came down to check on Rogue every once in a while. It was hard for her to be in the same room with Logan at the moment. She knew she would have to deal with it eventually.

"I'm sorry, Logan, but I need you to leave for now." Hank tried to shoo Logan away from the Med Lab.

"I ain't goin' anywhere Hank, so deal with it." Logan told him.

"I understand you are worried about our dear, Rogue. But if you insist on staying up all day and night, you are not going to be helping anyone. You can come back in the morning. If any changes happen, I will alert you immediately." Hank promised him.

Logan sighed and finally agreed. "Ya better be alright, kid." He said before leaving for his bedroom.

He changed into a pair of pants and got underneath the covers and slowly drifted off to sleep.

_He sat up in his bed as he heard crashing coming from downstairs. "What is that?" A ten year old boy asked as he got out of bed and opened the door. Another boy across the hall from him opened his door and looked at him. The other boy looked to be about thirteen. _

_Bang_

_The ten year old ran to the stairwell and looked down to see his mother and a strange man standing with a gun. On the floor was his father with a bullet in his chest. "No, father!" He yelled and ran down the stairs._

"_Jim!" The other boy yelled and chased after him. The ten year old ran to his father and found him dead. _

"_You! You did this!" The ten year old screamed and felt a sharp pain in his knuckles. He ran at the other man and started punching him until three small bone claws came out and stabbed the other man. _

"_No!" His mother screamed as the stranger started sliding down to the ground. _

"_My son." The stranger said before hitting the ground. The ten year old looked in horror at the now dead man and was grabbed by the other boy. _

"_What have you done?" His mother cried and backed away from the two boys. _

"_Come on, James!" The other boy said and pulled the other boy out the door and they ran through the backyard and through the forest. _

"_Let me go!" The smaller boy cried and pulled away from the older one. He looked down at his hands and cried. "What is happening to me?"_

"_I don't know, but we'll think of something." The older boy said. _

"_Why do you care?" The little asked and backed away as the other pulled him close._

"_We're brothers, Jim, we stick together." The other boy said before his face turned red. _

Logan opened his eyes. He had another flashback dream, but that wasn't concerning him as much as Gambit standing over him holding two glowing playing cards.

**End of Chapter 18**

AN: I think I was half asleep when I wrote this chapter, anyways, hope it was a bit of a improvement from the last chapter, though it is a lot shorter. I'm still in the process of revising chapter 17.

Character Info: **Monet aka M** – her powers consist of Super-strength, speed and stamina, flight, and invulnerability. You see why I used her now? It's a bit different than normal cause if I added Carol Danvers people would know what was going to happen, but it's the same results.

Special Thanks to: **scarleteyes2121, tfobmv18, laenamoradadeROGUE, Star-of-Chaos, RogueNya**, and **Wanda W**. thanks for taking the time to review.

**Sneak Peak: Wolverine vs. Gambit**

"What the heck is going on?" Jubilee shouted at Bobby as he, Jono, Sam, and Piotr watched Gambit and Wolverine fight.

"I don't know. Just heard a loud bang came out of our room and this was going on." Bobby responded.

"Shouldn't we like, break them up." Kitty asked as she flinched as Gambit threw a card and it exploded in Wolverine's face.

"If you want to, go ahead." Bobby insisted.

Deadpool had his face pressed against the glass and his hands on either side of it. "I see you!"


	19. Wolverine vs Gambit

I rewatched X3 and realized a few things. 1 the movie is crap, which I already knew. 2. Why does Magneto run to Jean and escort her out if she just killed Xavier? I would get as far away from her as possible. 3. Pyro is hot (no pun intended). 4. I want to smack Rogue. I think even comic and cartoon Rogue would punch her.

Disclaimer: Yep, once again, own nothing. Wish I owned a script to X-Men Origins: Wolverine so I knew what was going to happen with the Cajun and everyone's favorite mercenary, but Fox refuses to answer my emails.

Italic - Jono talking or past memory

* * *

**Weapon X Facility**

Malcolm Colcord walked into the meeting room with six people waiting for him. "You better have good news." He said as he sat down at the head of the table. "How is our progress with the mutants?" He asked his Chief of Science and Research, Dr. Abraham Cornelius.

The white haired man adjusted his glasses before speaking. "We have been testing different drugs on mutants to control them, but it seems to always ware off. The longest we are able to control them is up to eight hours. As for the cloning is a success. When given Weapon X's DNA we will be able to replicate him and build a new one." Cornelius stated. The scientist across from him opened his file and passed it down to Colcord.

"We've been able to identity the mutants that were traveling along with the mutant, Gambit. They might be of some interest to you." The scientist told the Director as he looked down at a picture of a young woman with brown hair and white stripe and a young man with blond hair. "The girl is able to absorb other mutant's powers; she could make a good weapon. At the moment she is unable to control it, but with proper testing she could be unstoppable." He suggested.

"That is absurd." Dr. Windsor snorted at the other man. "This is a guarantee failure." Through his research, he had learned up to a certain age, if a mutant does not have control of their powers, there was a eighty percent chance it would not get control at all. However, for these people all they wanted to create a weapon and control mutants. He believed there were easier ways of accomplishing this and that was what he was testing on Gambit. With the right manipulation, any mutant could be controlled without a mind control drug being added.

He had another theory he wanted to test out when he finds the two perfect mutants for the experiment. He believed if combined with the right DNA, it was possible to make an ultimate mutant. The girl these fools were describing, in his opinion, could never be controlled and knew it would be a waste. It would result in disaster once more. To perfect a weapon took time, which was something they were not big on.

"If done properly, it could be." Dr. Cornelius defended against Dr. Windsor. He looked over the file as well. "She already has Weapon X's healing power along with Magneto's and many others." He mused to himself.

"You out of everyone in this room should know it is impossible and idiotic to make a weapon with too many powers. At the most, a mutant could take up to five powers if on a small power scale. If she is unable to control the powers now, then she won't ever be able to control them. Your best bet is to recreate Weapon X." Dr. Windsor rebutted against his superior.

"You have no imagination." One of the other scientists by the name of Dr. Strucker snorted. "If it can't be done, we make it be done. I think there is a lot of potential in this one." He stated.

"Obviously your puny brain has forgotten what happened last time this place created a mutant like this. Any of you remember Weapon XI? It ended up being too much and destroyed itself. There are other things we should be concerning ourselves with." Dr. Windsor replied. He rubbed his temple. He didn't understand why he was always surrounded by idiots who never learned from the past.

"Then you don't need to be part of this project. Also, the mutant Gambit when he returns will be terminated." Dr. Cornelius told Windsor, who glared at him. He had more tests to run on that mutant. "Whatever work you were doing on him has been canceled. If you have a problem with this, you may leave." Dr. Windsor sat back in his chair and looked away. He tapped his finger nails against the chair in thought, but said nothing. He would have work to do.

Another scientist at the far end of the table spoke up. "Also, project Predator X is coming along sufficiently. We believe if this turns to be a success, then it will be beneficial for when we get the mutant with absorbing powers under our control. We believe by tomorrow it will be ready for testing." She told the Director.

"Is there anything else?" The Director asked, getting annoyed by the scientists arguing.

"Yes, as you know, Stryker had put a small tracking device in each of his project's necks." The man at the far end stated as he activated the screen projector. It showed a layout of Xavier's School. "As you can see this red dot shows the Wolverine." He indicated to the dot moving back and forth. "This is Deadpool." He pointed to the dot at the other end of the school.

Malcolm frowned and got up from his chair and walked up to the screen. "Who's this?" He asked as he pointed to the red dot outside of the school.

"We are unable to track the number due to Stryker's files being destroyed. All we know is that one of his other experiments is there as well." The man pointed out.

"Find out who it is immediately." Malcolm ordered to the man. He looked back at the screen.

**X-Mansion**

Logan rolled off of his bed before two cards hit and fell onto the floor. He got up and unsheathed his claws as he glared at the Cajun mutant. "Apparently Ro don't know ya as well as she thought." He muttered as he lunged at Gambit.

Down the hallway students were leaving their rooms and running down the hall. Everyone in the mansion heard the explosion coming from the teacher's wing. "Maybe we should, you know, stay here?" Kitty asked Jubilee as the other girl passed her room.

"Remember what happened last time someone attacked the mansion in the middle of the night, people got kidnapped. Plus that's coming from the teacher's wing. I am guessing Wolvie got another visitor and might need some help." Jubilee replied to the girl.

Gambit moved out of the way before Wolverine could strike him and sent another charged card at the feral mutant and sent him flying through the wall and into the hallway. Wolverine growled as dust covered him and Gambit came through the door and had more cards in his hands. He ignored the students who were standing at the end of the hall and ran at Gambit again and took another swing at him, this time ripping his coat.

"What the heck is going on?" Jubilee shouted at Bobby as he, Jono, Sam, and Piotr watched Gambit and Wolverine fight.

"I don't know. Just heard a loud bang came out of our room and this was going on." Bobby responded.

"Shouldn't we like, break them up." Kitty asked as she flinched as Gambit threw a card and it exploded in Wolverine's face.

"If you want to, go ahead." Bobby insisted.

Wolverine growled as his healing factor repaired the damaged done by the cards and glared at Gambit. He had enough of this. He dodged the cards as they flew at him. 'There's somethin' goin' on, usually he does more than cards.' He thought to himself as he remembered the last time he fought the Cajun mutant. It almost seemed as if he was possessed.

Storm came out of her room and saw the fight. She saw Wolverine take a swing at Gambit, who ducked and attempted to throw more cards, but Wolverine was faster. He spun around and jammed one of his claws into Gambit's shoulder and sent him into the wall. A flicker sparked in Gambit's eye as he looked at Wolverine before he fell to the floor unconscious. "Logan! Stop!" She cried as she ran towards them.

Wolverine stood over Gambit and had his claws above the younger mutant. "Not gonna do nothin', Ro. Just makin' sure he don't get up again." Logan responded to her as she bent down next to Remy. "Still think your friends as good as ya thought? Wonder who he's workin' for." Logan growled.

Ororo ignored the statement and turned Remy's head away from her and noticed a scar on the back of his neck. "I believe I know the answer to that." She told him. Logan looked at where she indicated and took a step back.

"That's impossible. Stryker is dead and the government closed down the Weapon X facility." Logan said to himself. Jubilee turned at looked at Jono. With everything that had been going on, they had forgotten to mention that to the adults.

_Actually, they've reopened four months ago under a new director._ Jono spoke up. Logan looked at the teen. _They started to collect mutants, but we were able to escape before they did anything._ He added.

"When were ya plannin' on tellin' us?" Logan asked him. The younger mutant turned his head away feeling a little intimidated by him.

"Actually we all knew, but with everything going on with Rogue and now the Professor, we kind of forgot." Jubilee answered for Jono and took his hand. If he was going to get into trouble, then so was she.

"This is very serious." Ororo told the teens as she stood up away from Remy. "Do you know where they are located or any other information?" She asked Jono.

_Not really. When I escaped with the other mutants, we burned it down. We thought it destroyed all their work. We didn't know they had another base somewhere else._ Jono responded to the white haired woman.

"He probably knows." Logan said as he looked down at Gambit. "We should lock him up, just in case that drug hasn't worn off yet." He told Storm, who wanted to disagree. She didn't want to see her friend in a cell, but knew that if he wasn't in the right state of mind it could be hazardous on the school. "Tin Man, come on and help me drag his sorry ass down there." He ordered to Piotr and ignored the glare from Ororo. He knew he was supposed to watch the language around the younger students, but at the moment he didn't care. It was four in the morning and this was the third time he had been attacked in two days.

"Everyone, please go back to bed." Ororo ordered to the other students.

"But now I won't be able to sleep!" Kitty protested. Ororo stared down at the girl who backed away. "I guess I could try." She said as she and the rest of the students went back to their rooms.

* * *

The next morning, Scott looked through old photos of his time at the mansion. He found a picture of himself at the age of seventeen when he first arrived at the mansion after being rescued by Professor Xavier. Most of the pictures were of Jean and himself. He smiled down sadly at the photo and traced Jean's face.

He remembered her kissing him and then everything went black. After that Magneto had found him and lied to him. The older man didn't expect Scott to remember as fast as he had. Coming back to the mansion had trigger lots of memories of the past thirteen years. His memory was a little fuzzy on his life before that. Only parts of his childhood he remembered.

He got off of his bed and placed the photo of Jean and himself on his pillow before leaving his room. As he walked down the hall he heard lots of commotion going on as people were carrying suitcases with them. An adult spotted him and came over to him. "I have never been so disappointed with this place. This school is supposed to protect our children and teach them how to use their powers. Not to put themselves in danger!" A woman yelled at him.

"Ma'am." Scott tried to say, but the woman cut him off.

"I don't want to hear your excuses. First, this place gets attacked and children get kidnapped. I thought of taking Tabitha out of here, but my husband disagreed. Now, this Professor Xavier who runs the school is nowhere to be seen, classes keep getting canceled and no one is learning to use their powers, and the school keeps getting attacked! I heard from another parent that the school was attacked last night!" The woman yelled.

Scott bit his tongue. He wanted to tell this woman that he had not been at the school for the past month and had no idea what was going on. However, he knew if he did, it would only give the woman another excuse by saying none of the teachers knew what was going on. "I'm sorry for what has been happening around here lately. There-" He tried to explain, but she cut him off again.

"I don't want to hear it! Tabitha will be much safer at home then here!" The woman said before she turned and left.

'I hate this job sometimes.' Scott thought to himself. He decided he should check on Ororo. If he had been attacked by a parent in the hallway, he couldn't imagine what she was getting.

**Rogue's Mind**

Rogue opened her eyes to find herself lying on a bed in a room she had not seen in years. She sat up and looked around the pink room to find it filled with stuff animals and a white dresser in the corner. On her nightstand sat a doll wearing a wedding dress that she had gotten when she was four. She gazed around the room with a small smile on her face as she picked up a stuff frog and held it close. This place was sacred to her, a place she could get away from her parents constant fussing over her. A place where she could be herself.

"You can't get me, Marie!" She heard a giggle from outside the window and peered out. She saw a brown haired five year old girl chasing her fifteen year old cousin. The little girl laughed as she ran before tumbling over a hole in the ground. She fell to her knees and started to cry.

"Are you alright?" Her cousin asked as he bent down next to her. He hadn't meant to get that far ahead of her to cause her to trip.

"My leg is bleeding." She cried as her cousin picked her up and carried her off to the house.

Rogue placed the stuff frog on the bed and exited the room and down the hall to the stairs. She reached the downstairs and saw her younger self sitting on the counter. Her cousin was getting a bandage to wrap it up.

"What happened?" She heard an older female voice asked as entered the room. The woman had medium length black hair tied up in a bun. She wore a blue sweater over a pair of black pants.

"Auntie, I hurt myself." Marie told her aunt who came to inspect it. "Graydon was going to wrap it up." She added in. Her aunt looked over at her cousin and took the supplies.

"First we need to clean this up so it won't get infected." Her aunt stated and took out some antiseptic and started cleaning the wound. "This might sting, but I need you to be a big girl for me." Her aunt soothed her as she wiped the cloth over her leg. Marie bit her lip and held onto the counter tightly as she felt the sting. "That's my big girl." Her aunt smiled at her and placed a band aid over the cut. "See all better."

"That wasn't so bad!" Marie said proudly as she hoped off the counter.

"Sorry about that, Marie." Her cousin, Graydon apologized. She ran over to him and hugged him.

"It's okay, I'm all better now!" She told him.

"Marie, your parents are here." Her aunt told her as the doorbell rung. Marie turned around and gave a sad face. She didn't want to go home with them. She liked staying with her aunt and cousin.

"Do I have to?" She whined to her aunt.

"I am afraid so, my dear. Don't worry, I'll see you again soon. Remember, next week your parents are going to Europe and you will be staying here for two weeks." She reminded the little girl.

"I can't wait!" She jumped up and down and then went to hug her aunt as Graydon went to answer the door. "I love you, auntie Raven." She kissed the other woman on the cheek.

"I love you too, my little Marie." Her aunt Raven responded.

Rogue smiled as she watched the scene disappear. She hadn't seen the other woman in years. Technically, she wasn't really her aunt, but her godmother, she was her mother's best friend, but she always referred to her as auntie Raven. The woman would always watch her when her parents were at work. When she was six, her father had gotten a job in England and they had to move, but she was afraid of flying. Her parents left her with aunt Raven until they came back three years later because her father lost his job. After that, something had happened to Graydon and she lost contact with her aunt. She was told she moved Germany.

"Isn't that sweet." She heard the sarcastic voice of Emma Frost behind her. She turned around and found her surrounding disappeared and everything was black with the exception of Emma and herself. "How could someone so innocent turn into a weak and whiny girl?"

"Only people who pick on others are weak." Rogue muttered at Emma, who smiled at her.

"You also forgot about killer." She heard a voice to her right and found her first boyfriend, David, standing there with his arms crossed over his chest. "I had a scholarship to any university I wanted, but because of you, I went into a coma." He glared at her.

"Ah didn't mean for that ta happen. Ah didn't know my powers were going to activate." Rogue tried to explain to him.

"That's why you stole my powers?" John said next to Emma. "I was just protecting us and you had to knock me out."

"That's all she does." Logan said from behind her. "She steals powers for her own survival." He growled.

"She would have been useful if she had completed what I set her to do. Unfortunately, she failed and lived." Magneto told the group as he stood next to David.

"Here I actually thought you were my friend. What was I thinking talking with you?" Kitty looked disgusted at Rogue as Bobby appeared next to her.

"Don't feel so bad. I actually welcomed her into our home and dated her. I should have gone out with you instead. At least you wouldn't have caused me to pass out." Bobby said to Kitty.

"Ah didn't mean ta absorb any of ya." Rogue yelled to them as she held her head as they continued talking.

"You know what you're doing. If only that cure actually worked, I would be with my friends instead of being unconscious. Of course, you wouldn't understand what having friends is like. All you have are people who feel pity on you." Monet told her.

Rogue lowered her hands to her side and looked at everyone. "What do all of ya want? Ya want to kill me or somethin' for somethin' Ah can't even control?" Rogue asked them. All at once, each person's eyes turned black and smirked.

"No, I want control." They all yelled at the same time. Each of them began to glow and formed into one body. Rogue covered her eyes to protect them. When the light died down, she found an image that looked identical to herself, with the exception of the hair being filled with black, brown, white, and blonde streaks throughout her hair. The counterpart wore her X-Men uniform. "Much better." The other Rogue said as she turned back to the real Rogue.

"What are ya?" Rogue asked as she looked at the other self.

* * *

"Do you think you'll be able to find her?" Kitty asked Betsy as she sat next to Rogue, who was lying on the hospital bed.

"Hopefully, unfortunately, I do not know her so it might be hard to know where she might be located. Also there is a possible she might attack me thinking I am an intruder." Betsy stated as Jono and Jubilee entered the Med Lab.

_I would like to help. I caught a glimpse of the inside of her mind and it's a mess. You'll need help._ Jono told her.

"Very well. Sit next to me." Betsy ordered. Jono did as instructed by pulling up a chair next to the blond woman. She held out her hand and he took it.

**Rogue's Mind**

"Who am I? I am your fear, Wolverine's rage, Magneto's anger, Pyro's bitterness, Emma's selfishness, David's hatred, Kitty's regret, Monet's jealousy, and Bobby's frustration." The darker version of herself stated.

"Ya could have just said ya are a pissed off version of me instead of borin' me with all of that." Rogue rolled her eyes at the counterpart.

"No, I am the more powerful version of you. Not the little scared girl who hides from her fears. You are nothing but a waste. You could rule this planet, but you are afraid to use your powers." The darker version said.

"Ah don't want all that power. Ah wanna be normal and there ain' nothin' wrong with that. The thing is, Ah'm real and ya're just a bunch of angry voices in my head." Rogue yelled at the other version who flew at her and sent her flying to the ground.

"Not for long." The dark Rogue smiled down at Rogue. She bent down next to her. "As soon as I gain control, I am going to absorb everyone in my path and become so powerful it will put Jean Grey to shame."

"Ah ain't gonna let ya do that, bitch!" Rogue said as she tried to get up, but the other Rogue kicked her.

"Yes you will, because you know you can't beat me." Dark Rogue said as she stood over Rogue. Once again, she smiled. "I think I'll choose a different name for myself. Bitch could be a good one and Dark Rogue sounds so cliché, doesn't it?"

Rogue glared up at the other version. "Ya wouldn't be the first power hungry freak ta call yaself that." She said causing the other one to laugh.

"How true. Let's go with Malice." She said down to Rogue.

**Storm's Office**

"This is unacceptable!" One parent yelled at Ororo as she stood in front of her desk. "We send our children here to be protected not to be harmed! Rebecca told me that a girl was put in a coma by another because of her powers. I thought you people taught them to control their powers, not to use them on one another!" Parents continued their onslaught at her. Like Scott, they hadn't allowed her to say a word to explain the situation.

At the moment, thirteen more people were moving out and by the end of the week, they'd be lucky to have twenty people still living in the school. As soon as the parents left, Ororo sat down at her desk and sighed in frustration. None of the things that were happening were her fault nor anyone else's. Unfortunately, bad things continued to plague those who lived at the school. It was bad enough they were unable to locate the Shadow King and knowing he was roaming around somewhere was troubling.

A knock at the door startled her. She expected to see more parents coming in to tell her how bad of a job she had been doing running the school. Instead, she found Scott inside the room. "I am guessing you saw them?" Scott asked her.

"Yes, they refused to let me explain anything and told me how this place should be shut down because I am incapable to running the school." Ororo responded to him. She thought back to earlier when Professor Xavier had told her the same thing. At the time she didn't know he was possessed, but now she started thinking he was right, possessed or not.

"The Professor's entire dream is dead." Ororo whispered as she got up from the desk. "He built this place to what it was, and in a matter of a month, it was destroyed."

"It's not dead. The Professor wanted a world where mutants and humans could live side by side without fear. It's not the easiest thing to accomplish and probably won't happen in our lifetime, but these things take time. Eventually, his dream will come true because of the X-Men. Just like this school, it can be rebuilt to how it was before." Scott told her. Ororo sighed.

"This never would have happened if you were in charge." She said to him.

"All this stuff would have happened no matter what, even if I was in charge. What we need to do is protect those who are still here and try to rebuild this school's name." Scott tried to encourage her. He knew if everyone felt it couldn't be done, it wouldn't be done. They needed to believe it had to be done. "Besides, this role was forced upon you. You didn't expect to have to run the institute."

"Yeah." Ororo whispered. She hated feeling weak. She had prided herself in being a confident woman and didn't feel like she was at the moment. "We have another problem besides the Shadow King. Weapon X has been reopened and Logan keeps getting attacked by people they send. Also, Mr. Starsmore told us that they had tried to capture mutants, but were not successful. Unfortunately, he doesn't know where they would be located." She explained to him with a sigh. "It never gets easy, does it?"

Scott smiled. "That's what part of being an X-Man is all about."

**Lower Basement – Cell Area**

_Two guards escorted Remy down the hall of jail cells. A yellow collar with a red blinking light hung around his neck. His body still ached from the stabbed he received from Wolverine, but they said he would heal fine enough in a cell. _

_The two guards stopped in front of a cell with two bunk beds with someone sitting on the bottom bunk. A cigarette hung from the other prisoner's fingers, but Remy couldn't see the person's face. Finally, the guards opened the door and continued to escort him inside. _

"_Move, Wisdom. You're on the top bunk now." The first guard ordered the other prisoner, who sat up and did not look pleased. He had short black hair with a few strands in his blue eyes. _

"_What the bloody 'ell for? What the bloke afraid of heights?" The other prisoner sneered in an English accent. The second guard glared at the prisoner. _

"_If you don't move, we'll tazer your ass up there. It's only temporary until he is healed. If we find you causing trouble, you'll be sent to the special block." The second guard threatened. Wisdom snorted and took a drag out of his cigarette. "Also, we told you not to smoke in here." _

_Wisdom rolled his eyes and stood up off the bed and put the cigarette out on the mattress. "Stupid gits." Wisdom muttered before he hopped on the top bunk. The guards sat Remy down on the bed before leaving. They locked the door behind him before leaving. "So what did you do to end up in the nut house?" He asked before jumping down and relighting his cigarette with a match he had hidden in the mattress._

"_Trusted de wrong person and paid for it." Remy answered. His new cellmate nodded before taking out another cigarette he had hidden and offered it to Remy. "Merci. Why y' in here?" He asked after taking the match from Wisdom._

"_Did some work for this lot and it didn't go so well." Wisdom replied. "Name's Pete Wisdom." He said before holding his hand out to Remy. _

"_Remy LeBeau." Remy said as he shook Pete's hand. _

"_I'll tell you the rules now, if I catch you looking at me while I piss, I'll cut your bleedin' eyes out." He warned Remy. "You don't swing that way, do you?"_

"_Even if I did, y' wouldn't be my type." Remy responded. _

Remy opened his eyes and found himself on the floor of a white cell with glass barriers separating. He squinted at the light as his eyes adjusted. 'Why can' I ever wake up to a bed full of naked filles?' He thought to himself as he sat up. The last thing he remembered was feeling a sharp pain to his shoulder before blacking out. Before that he was in the interrogation room in Weapon X with doctor needle and scar face.

Tap. Tap.

He looked over and sat up and backed away as he saw Deadpool had his face pressed against the glass with his hands on either side of it. "I see you!" He said.

"Mon dieu, I've died and gone to hell." Remy muttered.

**End of Chapter 19**

A/N: I just wanted to make it clear, the scene with Rogue's flashback does have importance in the story, it's not just there for no significant reason or to tease ppl.

Character Info: I just realized that I've had Chamber in here and not a lot of ppl know about him. His name is Jonothan Starsmore aka Chamber. His entire body is composed of psionic energy that blew off his jaw and so he has to keep it wrapped up. Only way for him to communicate is by telepathy. In here, his parents had sent him to the Weapon X Program (which he was involved in with the comics as a spy). He and other mutants escaped. And he ended up at the mansion. That is all I'm going to say about him for now. I put a picture of him in my profile since once again, bad at description.

Special Thanks to: **Star-of-Chaos, RogueNya, tfobmv18 FANN, laenamoradadeROGUE, Wanda W,** and **Pace1818. **I appreciate your feedback. Next chapter, I promise to reply to them. Sorry for being really bad at replying.

Sneak Peak for Chapter 20: **Rogue vs Malice**

Remy banged his head against the back of the wall in frustration. He had been tortured, shot, drugged, broken bones, stabbed, and many other horrible things done to him, but this was the worse than any of them. "MON DIEU, TAIS-TOI!" He yelled.

"What did you call me? Why don't you try that in English and not in frog!" Deadpool told him, causing Gambit to bang his head against the wall again. "Did you hear that?" He suddenly says.

"All I hear is y'r mouth talkin' a hundred words a second." Gambit mutters in annoyance.

"My spidy senses are tingling in my shorts." Deadpool stated and got up to the entrance door to see it open. "I was right!" He laughed as heavy footprints and a growl were heard as the door shut.


	20. Rogue vs Malice

A part of me has died on the inside. Mike Carey is writing a comic: X-Men Origins: Gambit. The man can't write him in his current comic, why would he write his origin? I mean, look what he did to Mr. Sinister, or as he is called now, Miss. Sinister! I swear, if he screws it up, I won't be updating for a year or two because someone will have to bail me and my roommates out of jail! The art does look cool, but until I see some lines, I ain't sold!

**Disclaimer**: I own Nothing, like I did in the last chapter and the chapter before that and so on!

* * *

Remy stared at the red masked man as he backed away from the glass. He had never seen the other man before, but there was something familiar about him. 'Dat voice.' Remy thought to himself. He knew he had heard it before, but couldn't remember who it belonged to.

"Man you should of seen the look on your face, it looked like you pissed yourself." Deadpool said to Remy, who kept eyeing him. The red and black masked man looked down at Gambit. "Have I beaten you up before?" He asked.

Remy moved his arm and felt a sharp pain from where Wolverine had stabbed him. 'Damnit, where de hell did dis come from.' He thought to himself. As Deadpool continued to talk, Gambit started to remember where he had heard that voice before. "Merde." Gambit muttered.

"Wait a second, I know you." Deadpool taunted as he walked up to the glass.

Gambit's eyes went wide. He suddenly remembered where he had heard that face. 'Mon Dieu, it's Wade.' He thought to himself. "Wilson."

"Yeah, your that little kid that Stryker hired to get information on mutants. That was the good old days when people ran scared of you and Wolverine was less dramatic." Deadpool continued to talk and walked around his cell.

"Y' look different." Remy commented. The last time he had seen the man, he never wore the red and black uniform. Shortly after he had escaped from prison, he had found old newspapers on what had happened to the Weapon X facility on Three Mile Island.

"Yeah, cancer's a bitch. But thanks to everyone's favorite hairy little man, I got his healing factor and survived. I now go on Oprah and tell my story to the world, or at least I tried. It's funny, you threaten that lady and she'll send the mob after you. Not so noble is she. Anyways, I got thrown in a prison and all the prisoners had this thing called the dead pool. Whose ever name is picked is dead. Thought it was a cool name, so now I go by Deadpool. It's a lot shorter than Shut-the-fuck-up-Wilson!" Deadpool stated as he leaned against the glass wall.

'Great, now I got another reason for hatin' de Wolverine.' Remy thought bitterly to himself. He had met the mercenary once and was grateful when the encounter was over. He remembered that even Stryker seemed annoyed by Wilson and threatened to sew his mouth shut. Then he remembered a picture he had seen of Deadpool. "Non, mon ami. Not talkin' about dat. I remember seein' a picture of y' with-" Remy began to explain when Deadpool cut him off.

"That was a clone Weapon X made of me. I was in a coma during that time because Blob sat on me." Deadpool explained.

"Really, because from what I remember, de papers said it was y', except better cause dey sewed y'r mouth shut." Remy shot back at him.

"That was Barackapool!" Deadpool corrected before the doors opened and Logan entered. "Logan! Buddy! Bub!"

Logan ignored Deadpool and stood in front of Remy's cell. "I want answers Cajun, who are ya workin' for?" He asked him.

"How y' know I'm workin' for anyone?" Remy asked him as he slowly stood up while holding his shoulder. He slipped a card into his hand and tried to charge it, but found it not working. 'Merde.' He thought to himself.

"Hey, so hows the new broad?" Deadpool asked Logan, who glared at him.

"Cause I saw the mark on y'r neck. Now ya can either tell me where they are or I'll beat the shit outta ya." Logan threatened. Remy raised a hand to the back of his neck and felt the small circle and cursed. The last thing he needed was another scar.

"See, and here kitty said you are not like him. He called you a sissy." Deadpool continued to try to get Logan's attention. He snapped his fingers. "I know, since you don't remember we can reenact how Silverfox died." He suggested and looked at Gambit. "You look close to a woman, you can play the girl!"

"I don't know why dey even bothered injectin' dat crap into me. I told dem dat I would kick y'r ass and bring y' in." Remy told Logan, also ignoring Deadpool.

"Okay, fine. I'll play both parts. I shall do it in the form of a dance." Deadpool complained.

"Who is in charge of it? I know Weapon X has been reopened." Logan demanded to Remy.

Remy shrugged and leaned against the wall. "Some guy y' sliced up. He got all pissy. Tell y' what, let me outta here and I'll tell ya." He grinned at Logan, who snorted.

"I am Silverfox!" Deadpool opened his arms and held them up. "My boyfriend is a Hugh Jackman wannabe and the world revolves around him." He said and then turned around and brought his hands down into claws. "I am Sabertooth. I am pissed off at the world because no one has been able to solve my flea problem in over a hundred years."

Logan growled and looked over at Deadpool. "Shut the fuck up!" He shouted at the mercenary.

"See you do remember my nickname you and Sabertooth gave me." Deadpool said.

"What the hell does Sabertooth have ta do with anything? The guy worked for Magneto and I kicked his ass." Logan stated. He remembered the other feral mutant and taking him down on the Statue of Liberty.

"He de reason why I know y', unfortunately." Gambit muttered. Logan looked back at him.

"What do ya mean?" Logan asked. Perhaps he would finally find out why the Cajun had been in his memories.

"Y' hunted me down to find out where Sabertooth was. I was lookin' for him, we finally found him, den y' stabbed me before we could go into the place on Three Mile Island." Gambit muttered.

"Yeah, you got all pissy because he tore out Silverfox's throat and played with her insides and then left the remains for you." Deadpool added.

'That woman.' Logan thought to himself as he remembered the flashes in the dream he had the one night. A brownish red haired woman he talked to and then found dead before they got to the bottom of the elevator. 'That has to be Silverfox.'

"I ran into kitty a year ago. Like you, he lost his memory and was really pissed off knowing he ran into you and didn't get to torture you more. He said something about you and this red haired chick and he was going to kill her in front of you." Deadpool told him.

"Jean." Logan whispered.

"Oh, so you did find a replacement for Silverfox, I'm sure she cursing you in hell." Deadpool told him.

"She wasn't anythin' but a friend and she had someone else." Logan snarled at the mercenary who kept edging him on. He didn't understand why he was explaining this to the maniac.

"Dude, you hit on another guys girl?" Deadpool whistled and shook his head.

"Y'r an asshole." Gambit commented. Logan snarled at the younger mutant.

"Enough of this shit. Where is the Weapon X facility at?" Logan yelled at him.

"Don't know. Dey knocked me out before dey brought me in and out." Gambit answered before Ororo entered the cell area with a sandwich on a plate in her hand. "Stormy, dis jackass is annoyin' me." Remy complained.

"I have a feeling you started it." Ororo told him and was about to press the button to release him, but Logan held her hand.

"I wouldn't do that." Logan warned him. Ororo pulled her hand away from him and glared at him.

"He's fine now." Ororo argued with him. She knew that Logan hadn't liked Remy and figured he just wanted to keep her friend in the cell.

"What are ya gonna do when we release ya?" Logan asked Gambit, who glared at him as well.

"Blow y'r head off." Gambit replied, honestly, for once.

"Why are you being hostile towards Logan? He didn't mean to stab you in the shoulder. You were-" Ororo tried to find the solution to why both men seemed to hate each other. They needed the information on Weapon X and what they were planning.

"Y' stabbed me again?" Gambit shouted at Logan, who didn't look sorry. "I'm gonna blow y' fuckin'-" He started to yell when he heard Deadpool laughing. "Casse toi!

"What do you mean he stabbed you again?" Ororo asked Remy and looked over at Logan.

"I knew him before he went all 'who am I and what's my past' crap. De man's a batard!" Gambit said and looked away from Logan. Deadpool knocked on the cell next to him.

"Speak English! No one understands you. I mean, what does de mean? Now repeat after me, THE!" Deadpool commented to Gambit, who flipped him off.

Ororo sighed knowing they were not getting anywhere. If she released Remy, he would attack Logan. She looked over at Logan who was now looking at the ground. 'This must be what he was talking about when he said he was afraid of who he was. If Remy thinks this way of him, what kind of man was he?' She thought to herself. She turned back to Remy and opened the small compartment to slide the plate underneath to the Cajun.

"Y'r not releasin' me? Y' take his side?" Remy looked shocked at Ororo. She looked over at him and shook her head.

"He is not the same as he was then. He's changed." Ororo told him.

"How come he gets food? I've been here longer and how come there are no bathrooms in here? Am I supposed to take a dump in the corner?" Deadpool asked. Ororo had an apple and Logan took it. He opened the compartment to roll it under Deadpool's cell when the mercenary pounced and grabbed his hand. "Gotcha!"

Logan rolled his eyes and unsheathed his claws, having them go through the mercenary's wrist.

"Ah!" Deadpool cried and released Logan's arm.

"Stick it in yer mouth and shut up." Logan growled as he pulled his arm back and stood up.

"De man hasn't changed much." Remy argued with Ororo as Logan gave Deadpool the apple. "Still self centered asshole I met at de casino."

"Sounds familiar, doesn't it?" Ororo asked him. "I may not have known him before he lost his memory, but he is a kind man who would not harm anyone. I am not going to release you until you give me your word that you will not attack him."

"Den I'll have to make myself comfortable, won' I." Remy responded and sat down in the corner.

"Well, then, I'll be going to check on Rogue." Ororo said before she left, catching Remy's attention. She knew arguing with Remy would be useless. Once he had his mind set on something, it was hard to change it. Logan followed after her shortly after.

"What?" Remy called back to Ororo, but she was gone. 'Merde, de whole time arguin' over him, I forgot about Rogue.' He thought to himself bitterly.

"Where did he stab you?" He heard Deadpool ask. "What did it feel like? Was there blood gushing everywhere? Did you cry?" Gambit rolled his eyes.

"He stopped me from getting' to Sabertooth. De asshole stabbed me just as we got to Three Mile Island." He muttered.

"Wait, I remember that! Yeah, Sir Stabs a Lot went into the Weapon X facility to find kitty. He found him and Weapon XI, who beat the crap outta him. I mean, I really nailed it to him and almost killed him. Unfortunately, he also cut off my head and then Stryker came out of nowhere with a magic bullet. Pretty much, everyone in that building was killed and Wolverine lost his memory." Deadpool recalled.

"What?" Remy whispered. He knew that the facility had been brought down and most were killed, but didn't know that's when Logan had lost his memory.

"Yeah, so in a way, he kind of saved you by stabbing you. Otherwise, I would have turned you into kibble with my awesome optic blast and other powers." Deadpool stated.

"Thought y' said it was y'r clone?" Gambit asked him. He leaned his head against the wall and began to think. Wolverine had stabbed him, but if he hadn't stopped him from going in he could have been killed. 'Mon dieu, why did he have to tell me dis. Now I don't know what to think.' He thought frustrated.

**Rogue's Mind**

"It don't matter what ya call yaself, I'm still not gonna let ya get away with-" Rogue argued with Malice, before the other hit her again.

"Like anyone really cares about you. I'm sure they are celebrating that you are unconscious right now. Don't worry, they will be visiting you here soon." Malice looked down at Rogue before she was attacked by Psylocke.

_Are you alright? _Chamber asked Rogue as he helped her up.

"Yeah, thanks." Rogue whispered to him before Malice tossed both him and Psylocke to the side and put up a barrier.

"No one is interfering. She is mine." Malice hissed at the two telepaths before turning back to Rogue. "Now, where were we?" She had a sadistic smile on her face.

"Ya were just leavin' my mind!" Rogue yelled before she launched herself at Malice and punched her in the face. She could feel Monet's super strength as well as the other borrowed powers at her control. She gazed at Psylocke and Chamber and hid a smile. They did care, otherwise no one would have tried to help her.

Malice glared at Rogue as she stood up. "Nice shot, but it won't beat me." She told her.

"Ah think it will." Rogue said as she flew at Malice and picked her up and threw her hard into the ground. "Ya say Ah'm weak and no one likes me, but if that were true, Ah wouldn't be kickin' y'r ass now!"

_Are we really needed here? It looked like she has things under control?_ Chamber commented to Psylocke. They watched Rogue attack her dark counterpart with fury.

"I think in a way we were. Malice was attempting to break Rogue emotionally by telling her no one cared for her, but us being here for support shows people do care about her." Psylocke explained. Chamber nodded and turned back to the fight.

_Kick her butt, Rogue! Jubilee, Kitty, Bobby, and the rest are waiting for you when you wake up!_ Chamber yelled to Rogue.

Rogue heard what Chamber said and smiled. She knew that her friends were worried about her when she was missing and knowing that they were still there for her, even after absorbing Monet, gave her more reason to stop Malice.

"Ya call me pathetic, weak, and had no friends!" Rogue said as Malice phased through her punch. "Once Ah did believe it myself!" Malice flew at Rogue. "But Ah know it ain't true. Ah ain't those things as long as Ah believe Ah ain't!" Three bone claws came through Rogue's right hand.

"You are still nothing. Bobby tells me he only dated you out of pity!" Malice yelled and punched Rogue.

Rogue felt a bruise on her arm, but felt Logan's healing factor taking affect. "Ya can tell Bobby that he's a lousy kisser!" She told Malice and brought her right hand up and punched Malice in the stomach. The barrier surround Rogue and Malice went down and Psylocke and Chamber ran into help her.

"How do Ah get rid of her?" Rogue called to Psylocke as Malice began to heal. Rogue sent an ice beam at her counterpart as metal formed and was sent at her.

"Hold on." Psylocke responded to her as Chamber undid his scarf and sent an energy blast at a scrap of metal that was flying towards the two telepaths.

"You're not going to get rid of me, little girl!" Malice snarled and flew at Rogue, who did the same. The two clashed and Rogue grabbed Malice's arms try prevent her from punching her. "You little bitch!" Malice yelled.

"Aw, look at the poor thing. Cursin' and swearin'. And ya call yaself a lady." Rogue mocked her and kicked Malice in the stomach. Once Malice fell to the ground, Rogue grabbed her arms and held them behind her back.

Psylocke unsheathed her psychic blade and cut a hole in the blackness. She forced it apart and revealed a bright white light. "Rogue, send her through!" Psylocke yelled. "There is only so long I can keep it open!"

Rogue grabbed Malice and was about to throw her through, when Malice punched Rogue in the face and sent her back. "You're not kicking me out." Malice growled. She knew if she left Rogue's mind, she would be wondering the astral plane for who knows how long. She needed to be attached to a body. Malice grabbed Rogue by the arm and threw her at the light, but Rogue stopped herself before going through.

Malice snarled again and flew at Rogue to kick her in, but Rogue dodged out of the way at the last minute. "See ya, wouldn't wanna be ya!" Rogue called to Malice as she went through the white light. Psylocke quickly closed the portal.

Rogue sighed and fell to her knees. She couldn't believe it. She had fought the darkness of everyone she had absorbed and her own and won. She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up at Chamber. _You alright?_ He asked her.

Rogue gave a grateful smile and nodded. "Yeah, just took a little outta me." She replied.

_How are you able to use your other powers here at full control?_ Chamber asked her. She had not shown any signs of using these new powers and had heard her telling Jubilee the other powers weren't controllable.

"This is her mind. In every person's mind, they have control over what happens. Malice tried to beat Rogue down so she could take control. If that were to happen, she could control Rogue's body in the real world. In her mind, she can touch people without absorbing them and has the ability to control all the powers she absorbed. However, it is not the same as the real world, but with proper training, they can be controlled." Psylocke explained.

"Would have liked ta known that before." Rogue said as she stood up. "So, how do Ah wake up now?" She asked Psylocke.

"That is up to you, my dear. We will be waiting." Psylocke responded before she and Chamber disappeared.

**Cell Area**

Remy banged his head against the back of the wall in frustration. He had been tortured, shot, drugged, broken bones, stabbed, and many other horrible things done to him, but this was the worse than any of them. "MON DIEU, TAIS-TOI!" He yelled.

"What did you call me? Why don't you try that in English and not in frog!" Deadpool told him, causing Gambit to bang his head against the wall again. "Did you hear that?" He suddenly says.

"All I hear is y'r mouth talkin' a hundred words a second." Gambit mutters in annoyance.

"My spidy senses are tingling in my shorts." Deadpool stated and got up to the entrance door to see it open. "I was right!" He laughed as heavy footprints and a growl were heard as the door shut.

"Well, well, look what I found and one of them's the Cajun." A snarl echoed through the hall as the intruder stepped in front of the cells.

"Oh fuck." Gambit swore as he gazed upon an enemy he hadn't seen in years and not having his powers at the moment, he knew he was at a huge disadvantage against this maniac.

**Brotherhood House**

"This place is a piece of crap." Wanda muttered as John showed her and Pietro around. "At least at the mansion, it looked half way decent and doesn't have a roach problem." She folded her arms over her chest as they walked through the bedroom hallway.

"What would you call Kitty?" John asked her with a smile.

"Okay, with the exception of a few." Wanda corrected herself as Pulse passed by them and accidently bumped Wanda. "Watch it!" She snarled at him and hexed him into the wall.

"Geez, it was an accident." Pulse told her and rubbed his side.

"You don't bump into a lady, but then again, you don't even understand when a girl can't stand you." John stated to Pulse. He turned to Wanda and Pietro and explained to them what had happened. "He was supposed to get Rogue, who Magneto wanted captured. Our little blond friend fell in love with her and then betrayed her and cried when she rejected him. What did you expect her to do?"

"You don't understand the situation at all. She has feelings for me, but they were clouded by that lowlife maggot. I know he charmed her against me because she had feelings for me. She just needs some time to clear her head from his intrusion." Pulse responded to the three.

"I don't know who Rogue is or any of the crap that came out of your mouth, but if you sell a girl out to someone, she's going to be pissed. If I was her, I would have turned you inside out, literally." Wanda told Pulse.

"She's not kidding either. She did it to a guy that gave her a dirty look." Pietro said to them. "Is there anything else around here? I am bored!"

"Yeah, right this way." John escorted the twins down the hall. "We'll leave him to cry in his room." Pulse glared at the three mutants as they walked down the hall. He turned and entered his room and slammed the door. He sat down at his desk and rummaged through it.

He had gotten Rogue to love him, he knew she did. How could she not? He was able to touch her where no other guy in the world would be able to touch her without passing out. 'She'll come around. She wants a normal life and I am the only one that can give it to her.' He thought to himself as he pulled out an address book. 'It's just him! I know he'll find her again and charm his way into her forgetting me. He's going to convince her that she doesn't need touch.' He smiled to himself. He knew that accent and knew a group that would have no problem taking care of Gambit.

He flipped through pages of the address book's A section and found the number he was looking for. The phone rang before someone finally answered. "Bonjour, dis is Pere's Pizza Place, dis is Gris Gris how may I take y'?" The voice on the other line said.

"I know you're not the pizza place." Pulse stated in the phone. "But I would like to place an order for a murder."

"Den y' called de right place, mon ami. We be de best assassins in New Orleans." The other voice replied.

"There is a mutant that I would like you to take care of. You might know him, Remy LeBeau." Pulse said into the phone. The line went quiet for a few seconds before Gris Gris responded.

"Oui, I know him." He responded. "Tell y' what, give me y'r address and we meet y' for payment. We'll even take off half for killin' him. We know where he is already." Gris Gris told him. Pulse smirked. He knew he called the right place. He told the Cajun assassin his address and hung up.

"Who was dat?" A male voice asked from behind Gris Gris.

"Never gonna believe dis, someone wants LeBeau killed." Gris Gris smirked at the man, who also smiled.

"De boss is goin' to love dis. It's been years since she has seen him." The other responded.

**End of Chapter 20**

Connard - idiot

Casse toi – piss off

Special Thanks to: **soficmac16, holly*sirius, RogueNya, Star-of-Chaos, tfobmv18, scarleteyes21**, and **laenamoradadeROGUE.** Thank you for taking the time to review, I appreciate your feedback.

Sneak Peak for Chapter 21:

"Now tell me, where would you like it? I'm sure I can shoot you in the face; otherwise I will have thousands of angry fan girls on my ass. Then again, I have no problem killing them too." Deadpool said as he jammed his gun into Gambit's back, he held the Cajun's left arm behind his back.

"Non, mon ami. Why don' y' go play with y'r other friend over dere? Dey got healing factor and will be much better fight den dis ol' Cajun." Gambit told Deadpool as he charmed the mercenary to slightly letting go of his hold.

"Hm, they would be tougher and you are a bit scrawny. I like my kill with meat on it." Deadpool said to himself.

"Hey, look over, dere! Dead hooker!' Gambit looked over to the other side, distracting the mercenary.

"Where!" Deadpool let go of Gambit and looked in the direction. "Hey, there's no dead… oh shit!" He cried before a card was curled at his chest, sending him flying into Wolverine.


	21. Sabertooth

I revised this chapter 5 or 6 times, hopefully it came out right. My spell checker got into a fight with me and refused to believe some of the words were right (mostly accents), so if I have any misspellings, please tell me.

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing!

* * *

Dr. Robert Windsor sat on a stool with his glasses off to the side on the table as he peered through a microscope. He had extracted some blood from his latest experiment on the Cajun mutant Weapon X had apprehended. He was told to get rid of all his work on the mutant, but secretly kept his files and samples hidden.

"Interesting." He whispered to himself.

"What are you doing, Essex?" Dr. Cornelius asked as he stood behind the other doctor. "Oh I'm sorry; you like to be called Dr. Windsor." He gave a snide remark.

"I am checking over the progress if Predator X." Dr. Windsor said and was about to put away the slide when Cornelius stopped him and looked through the microscope.

"Fascinating. The cells seem to have an electric current to them that rebuild themselves." He commented before stepping away. "Though, I do not recall us attaching any powers like this into Predator X." He glared at the other scientist, who hesitated. He took the slide out and smashed it on the table. Dr. Windsor yelled and picked up the pieces, accidently cutting his finger on the glass.

"This is your last warning, get rid of this garbage or find another profession." Cornelius warned before leaving. Dr. Windsor glared at the other man as he left and looked down at his work. The only thing causing him not to have an outburst was the fact he had more samples hidden. He knew now he would have to find a more secured location.

He cursed and looked down at the piece of glass sticking out of his finger. He knew better than to try to pick up glass without gloves, but he had to make it look like it was the only sample he had otherwise Cornelius could get suspicious. He pulled out a pair of tweezers and carefully removed the glass from his bleeding finger.

He put the shard on the table and stared at it. The piece had been from the middle of the slide that had contained Gambit's blood. 'Shit.' He cursed to himself.

**X-Mansion**

"Can I come in?" Lorna asked as she knocked on Bobby's door. He was sitting on his bed going through his nightstand drawer. He had been meaning to clean it out for months now, but never got around to it.

"Yeah, of course." He smiled at her and she took a seat next to him. He took the pictures he had pulled out and was about to place them back in the drawer when she took them from him.

"Is this your family?" She asked him as she came upon a picture of him when he was nine years old and posing with his parents and brother. Bobby nodded.

"Yeah." He whispered looked back at the drawer. Inside he had placed letters he had written to his parents telling them everything he wanted to tell them over the phone, but never had the guts to mail it. He figured they didn't want anything to do with him now. A part of him wished they accepted him for who he was and not what. He knew there would be no going back.

Lorna had a sad expression on her face as she looked at the photo. "They created us and then discard us." She said to him as she flipped through the next picture.

"They don't understand. My mom always told me it is always best to be yourself then to be someone you're not. All of it was a bunch of bullshit." He shook his head and looked at the next picture she found. It was one taken before John had left. It showed John, Rogue, Piotr, Kitty, and himself standing in front of the school posing. In the background, there were students running around and playing basketball on the court.

"Things have changed so much it such a short amount of time. I mean, Miss. Grey is dead, the Professor who we thought was dead came back and wants to kill people, Mr. Summers is back from the dead, but he was never dead, all the students in the school are almost all gone, and Rogue has more powers than she did before and can't control them. I am probably missing a few things, aren't I?" He looked over at Lorna, who scooted closer to him. He wrapped his arm around her and had her lean against him.

"Change is scary and different, but it can also be a good thing." Lorna said as she looked at him.

"I suppose, but why can't it be easier?" He asked and looked down at Lorna. Their eyes met and he rested his forehead against hers.

"Otherwise, it would be a challenge." She said before he kissed her.

"Hey, Bobby, we're going out to. . ." Sam came into the room and found the two kissing. They broke apart and slid away from each other, both blushing having been caught. "I'll come back later. Sorry." He slid out the door.

Bobby looked over at Lorna and she did the same, each had a small smile on their face. "I suppose there are some good changes around here."

**Med Lab**

Monet opened her eyes and looked at the grey ceiling tiles. 'What happened?' She thought to herself as she slowly sat up in the hospital bed across from two empty ones. She looked over and saw Psylocke and Chamber sitting in chairs and saw Rogue lying in the bed next to her.

"What the hell is she still doing here?" Monet yelled in outrage. She threw the white blanket off of her and got out of bed, but held onto it due to a touch of vertigo. "She is the reason I am here!" She accused the unconscious girl.

"You're the reason why she is here! If you weren't such a bitch, neither of you would have been here!" Jubilee yelled at her and walked right up to the brown haired girl's face. She knew that Monet could pound her into the wall, but she didn't care. It was time she was put in her place.

"She attacked me! I didn't go up to her and ask if she could absorb me. I told the teachers here that she was dangerous, but no one listened." Monet screamed as Ororo entered the room.

"Piotr saw you, you and your little friends went after her!" Jubilee argued back. Monet raised her fist at the other girl when Ororo stepped in between them.

"That is enough, both of you." The white haired woman looked at both girls. "There will be no fighting here or anywhere else in this school." She looked at Jubilee and then at Monet. "Is that understood?" Monet rolled her eyes and took a step back.

"Whatever, I am leaving this place. At least I will be safer." Monet remarked before giving one last glare at Rogue and left the med lab.

"She started it and I was just defending Rogue, please don't give me detention!" Jubilee begged Miss. Munroe.

"It's alright, Jubilee. I did not hear the whole conversation, but I know from her past behavior and from her raising a fist to you that you did not start it." Ororo calmed the young girl, who looked relieved.

"When are classes going to restart? I know the Professor is missing and those Weapon X guys keep attacking Wolvie and all. Though I am not saying to hurry up with restarting them, actually if you want to you can prolong it a month or two." Jubilee smiled innocently at Miss. Munroe.

"Most likely after everything is straightened out and less chaotic. Hopefully we will still have students to teach." Miss Munroe sighed to herself.

"Don't worry; I'll try to keep everyone else here! Except Monet, she can get hit by a train for all I care." Jubilee said and turned away from Ororo gave her a stern disapproving look.

Psylocke stretched before she stood up from her chair. She saw Warren standing to the side looking at her. Slowly, he walked over to her and held out his arm. "Can I still take you up on that meal?" He asked her with a small smile.

"I would be delighted." She took his arm and he escorted her out of the med lab.

**Cell Area**

Gambit stood up with his back against the further end of the cell. 'Damnit Stormy! I told y' to let me outta here.' He cursed to himself as Sabertooth pushed the button and opened the cell before leaping at Gambit, who ducked under him and rolled out of the way. Gambit ran out of the cell and led the psychopathic mutant down the hall.

"Hey! A little help! I want to kill him too!" Deadpool yelled after the two of them. He banged his hand into the wall and looked at the glass. "Eh, who am I kidding? I have had enough of this." He said before he pulled out a mini grenade from his boot. "Bombs away!" He yelled before tossing it at the door and blowing it up. He ran to the locker area across from his cell and opened it to reveal his katanas and guns. "My babies! You're so cold. Don't worry; I'll warm you up really fast." He whispered to his weapons before chasing after the two mutants.

Gambit dodged Sabertooth's swipe of his claw and looked around quickly. 'Gotta get to an open space.' He thought to himself and knew that the Danger Room was around the corner. It may not have been an escape route, but he didn't plan on Sabertooth leaving alive.

"Dis way, kitty." Gambit taunted Sabertooth as he ran to the Danger Room. Sabertooth tackled Gambit just as he reached the entrance.

"Gotcha!" Sabertooth snarled and pinned Gambit to the ground. Gambit tried to kick at Sabertooth, but he sat on his legs and held his wrist above his head with one clawed hand. "Now let's see, I have had fun with two of yer women and brother, but never you." He smiled down at Gambit.

"What de hell y' talkin' about?" Gambit snarled and continued to try to get free. He could feel his powers had returned, but was unable to get close to a piece of Sabertooth's clothing. It didn't help that his shoulder was still injured from a previous fight.

"Aw, ya don't know, do ya?" Sabertooth laughed and whispered into Gambit's ear. "That little bitch ya were gonna marry, her brother hired me to kill her." He revealed, causing Gambit's eyes to snap open in shock. He could feel himself trembling as Sabertooth continued to gloat. "He said she was better off dead than marryin' you. Would have done it himself, but then his daddy might get mad and disown him or some shit like that. The guy was a wuss. Too bad he got shot in the head." Sabertooth laughed.

"I am going to kill you!" Gambit struggled further to break free and tried to head-butt the other mutant in the head.

"Aw, now until ya know what I did with her." Sabertooth smiled sadistically at him. "First, I found the little wench walking to her car and grabbed her. Took her out into the woods and tied her up. The first thing I did was carve a nice little smiley face into her stomach with my claw. Ya should have heard her scream, but then again, I am sure ya have. Anyways, she begged for me to stop, but I smacked her face and broke her jaw. The little bitch wouldn't stop screamin' and I didn't want to cause any attention." Gambit began feeling sick to his stomach as Sabertooth continued to tell his story on how Belladonna died. "After that, I made little cuts down her arms and legs and across her pretty face. Didn't want her ta die quickly; what's the fun in that. And before I cut her throat open, I gave her a night she would never forget." Sabertooth laughed before his clothes began to glow red. He looked down and got off of Gambit.

"Y' son of a bitch!" Gambit snarled and attacked Sabertooth after clothes exploded. His shirt was mostly torn and parts of his pants survived. He barely had time to block Gambit's attack and he took out his bo staff and extended it and smacked him in the face with it.

**Kitchen**

Logan walked down the hallway and peered into the kitchen and ever room. He recognized a different scent that seemed familiar. He ran to the elevator and pressed the button to the lower level. Once he exited onto the lower level, he ran down the hallway, ignoring Jubilee and Kitty who heard him from the med lab.

"Wolvie, what's going on?" Jubilee asked him as he ran by.

"Go back in there and lock the door until I say!" He yelled to them before he entered the Danger Room and found Sabertooth and Gambit attacking each other. He came forward to stop the fight when he heard a gunshot and felt a pain in his ass. He turned around and saw Deadpool standing with smoke coming out of his gun.

"You always said I was a pain in the ass. Now it's true." Deadpool said as he put away his gun and charged at Wolverine, who unsheathed his claws and waited for Deadpool to get him.

Sabertooth could feel his healing factor take effect as the skin on his arm was burned off by one of Gambit's cards. "Ya didn't even let me get ta the best part." He laughed at Gambit and swung his claws at the smaller mutant. "I got her all dressed and pretty fer ya when ya got back. Put finger prints and hair and other crap ta make it look like ya killed her. Those morons actually believed it." He taunted the Cajun, who was furious.

"Y' gonna pay for what y' did to her, Genevieve and Henri!" Gambit snarled and was about to throw three more cards at Sabetooth when Deadpool was thrown at him. Wolverine came up next to him and glared at him. He didn't know if Gambit would attack him. However, at the moment, the only thing Gambit thought about was killing Sabertooth.

"Ow!" Deadpool whined as Sabertooth threw him off of him. Sabertooth got up and leapt at Wolverine. Gambit was about to charge his cards again when a bullet hole went through one. "I lost my dancing partner, I guess I'll have to take you." Gambit stared at him and dropped the cards to the ground.

"Guess I could use some practice." He muttered and pulled out a deck of cards in one hand and his bo staff in the other.

Sabertooth claws and Wolverine, who stabbed him in the gut. "See I missed this. None of these kiddies now a days give a good fight." Sabertooth smirked at his opponent before slashing him across the face. "It's always about these little powers."

Wolverine growled and slashed at Sabertooth again, but the larger mutant dodged him. "If only I had my memories when I saw ya last, Jimmy." He laughed.

"I don't know what the hell yer talkin' about, but I don't really care." Wolverine snarled and slashed Sabertooth across the ribs as his face began to heal.

"You and me go way back. We were best buds, until ya turned yer back on me for that slut. Gotta admit, she was a fun kill." Saberooth taunted as he lashed out at Wolverine and knocked him off his feet. "Ya don't remember her, do ya? That little girl who kept tellin' ya to keep yer humanity. Ya were a fool ta listen ta her. There ain't a reason ta keep it. If the world is gonna treat ya like an animal, why not embrace it and make those around ya suffer."

Wolverine glared up at Sabertooth and was able to recall the same speech from his past.

_They had just fallen out a window and had landed in a dumpster. That did not stop either one of them from trying to tear one another's head off. "I despise my humanity as much as you cherish yers." Saberooth snarled as he threw Wolverine against the wall and claws him in the chest. _

"_I will come for you without mercy next time we meet." Sabertooth growled and dropped Wolverine to the ground and walked away._

Wolverine shot up from the ground and slashed at Sabertooth. "Now it's my turn." He growled.

Gambit rolled out of the way and dropped his cards in the process as Deadpool took shots at him. The cards laid scattered around the room, but it didn't seem to faze the Cajun. He cursed as a bullet hit him in the arm. "One point for me!" Deadpool yelled and took out a katana and ran at Gambit, who brought his bo staff up to block and spun it around as the red masked man took another swing.

"Bet y'r so called clone fought better den y'. Wait dat was y'." Gambit said to the mercenary who glared at him and took another swipe at Gambit and knocked him into the wall. Before he could recover from the hit, Deadpool kicked him in the right leg and grabbed his left arm and brought it behind his back.

"Now tell me, where would you like it? I'm sure I can't shoot you in the face; otherwise I will have thousands of angry fan girls on my ass. Then again, I have no problem killing them too." Deadpool said as he jammed his gun into Gambit's back. "Oh and just so we're clear, no turning my gun that sissy pink color!"

"Non, mon ami. Why don' y' go play with y'r other friend over dere? Dey got healing factor and will be much better fight den dis ol' Cajun." Gambit told Deadpool as he charmed the mercenary to slightly letting go of his hold.

"Hm, they would be tougher and you are a bit scrawny. I like my kill with meat on it." Deadpool said to himself.

"Hey, look over, dere! Dead hooker!' Gambit looked over to the other side, distracting the mercenary.

"Where!" Deadpool let go of Gambit and looked in the direction. "Hey, there's no dead… oh shit!" He cried before a card was curled at his chest, sending him flying into Wolverine and Sabertooth.

Gambit ran up next to Wolverine who held his claws at him. "Let me guess, yer turn?" He asked. He remembered his conversation earlier with Gambit and knew the Cajun wanted him dead. He was a bit surprised by the red eyed mutant's response.

"Non, rather kick his ass den y'r's. Besides, gotta have a word with y' later." Gambit told him as Sabertooth stood up and Deadpool shot him in the back. He growled and picked the mercenary up by the throat and proceeded to crush it.

"Scream for me." Sabertooth growled. Deadpool pulled his head away and waved his hand between them to fan the bad breath.

"Okay how about this, OH MY GOD FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DON'T KILL ME PLEASE!" Deadpool cried to Sabertooth, who looked annoyed.

"Shut up." He snarled at the red and black masked man. He had forgotten how annoying the mercenary could get.

"What, not good enough? I can say it in a girly tone if you want?" Deadpool suggested before Sabertooth threw him at Gambit and Wolverine.

"Ow." Deadpool got up from the ground and glared at Sabertooth. "Okay, there is no way sergeant kitty litter has many muscles! I want someone to check him for steroid use!" He pointed at the feral mutant.

"Shut up!" The other three yelled at him. Sabertooth lunged at Gambit and Wolverine, who both dodged out of the way. Wolverine launched himself after the other mutant.

Gambit was about to join in when Deadpool sliced him across the cheek with a katana. "Not finished, pretty boy!" He said as he raised his sword.

"Ever had y'r healin' factor tested out, Wilson?" The Cajun asked Deadpool.

"What kind of stupid question is . . . that's not good." Deadpool said as he backed away. Gambit's bo staff began to glow red and he swung it around and slammed it into the ground, activating every card that had been dropped before, causing explosions throughout the Danger Room.

**Med Lab**

"That's not a good idea. He said not to go out there!" Kitty warned to Ororo. They had been sitting in the med lab waiting for Logan to return and were beginning to get worried, but they knew he would be able to take care of anything that came his way.

"I'll be fine." The white haired woman told the brown haired girl before leaving. She heard small explosions coming from the Danger Room and headed for the control room.

Once she got there, she locked the door and looked into the battlefield to find Wolverine, Deadpool, and Sabertooth getting up from the explosions that took place. Gambit was standing off to the side with his staff in hand, and then running at Sabertooth just as Wolverine was. She hit the buttons on the keyboard and activated the Danger Room.

The surrounding around the four changed into a forest. "Cool, so is this where you guys were born?" Deadpool asked as he looked around. "Hey, Vic, I see your mom!" He yelled at Sabertooth, who was fighting both Wolverine and Gambit. "How come no one wants to play with me? How many women do I have to kill to get some attention?"

Wires came out of the ceiling and wrapped around Deadpool and lifted him up. "Ew, this is disgusting. I thought this was a school, not a BDSM club!" Another wire came down and wrapped itself around his mouth.

More wires came out of the ceiling and wrapped themselves around the three mutants that were fighting. Gambit put his hands to the wires and charged them while never taking his eyes off of Sabertooth. At the moment, he didn't care if he broke his rule of no killing.

At the same time, Wolverine sliced through the wires with his claws and looked over to see the wires around Gambit explode. His coat was fringed and had little burns, but it didn't faze him.

"Get outta my way." Gambit glared at Wolverine as he stepped in front of him. He had a full pack of cards in his hands and wanted nothing more than to shove them down Sabertooth's throat.

"Didn' take ya as an assassin, kid." Wolverine commented to the Cajun.

"Dere are some exceptions." Gambit responded to him.

"From what Storm told me, ya were a kind hearted person, kill him right now, ya prove her wrong and all her beliefs on ya. For some reason, Rogue believes ya are a good person too, guess she was wrong also. Here ya are tryin' ta kill him and she's unconscious in the med lab." Wolverine told him.

"Y' have no idea what dat asshole has put me through. All for de sick pleasure of it." Gambit snarled.

"Yeah, I do. He did the same thing ta me. I may not remember a lot about Silverfox, but from what I do remember, I loved her more than life itself. I remember finding her dead body and him laughing and taunting him afterwards. She had taught me, by killing others; I become nothing but an animal. Nothing like him." Wolverine told him, and then looked back at Sabertooth with disgust.

Gambit stared angrily at Sabertooth as the mad man smirked at him. "Come on, Cajun. Finish what ya started." He taunted. Gambit thought about what Wolverine said and glared at Sabertooth. Did he want to be a killer? Be just like the man who had taken the lives of three people he held dear to his heart. However, but by killing him, no one else had to suffer, only his morality. He debated inside his head for a few moments before coming to a conclusion.

Gambit pushed pass Wolverine and walked up to Sabertooth. "Y'r gonna get y'rs one day. Hope I'm dere to see it." He said before turning around and leaving the Danger Room.

"Remy?" Ororo came out of the control room and greeted him. She sighed and shook her head at him. "Can't you go one day without causing trouble?" She asked him with a small smile.

"Non, dat be too borin'." Remy replied. "Is de med lab around here?" He asked her, thinking back to Rogue.

"Yes, right this way. We need to get you checked over." She told him. Remy gave her horrified look and shook his head.

"Non, I be fine." He responded to her and tried to pull away.

"I don't think so. You are hurt and Hank is going to check you over." She ordered to him as she pulled him into the med lab.

"Dang, Gumbo." Jubilee looked at Remy, whose coat was torn at the bottom and cuts along the sleeve. The buttons were also burned off. "Forget to throw the card."

Remy ignored her as Ororo had him sit on a hospital bed across from Rogue. He stared over at her. 'Sorry I couldn't be dere for y', chere.' He thought to himself. He took off his duster and laid it next to him.

"What happened to her?" Remy asked, never taking his eyes off of the sleeping southern beauty.

"She got shoved into another girl and accidently absorbed her. She hasn't woken up since." Kitty explained. She noticed the worry in Gambit's eyes, but didn't say anything, only smiled. 'He likes her.' She squealed in her head.

Hank came over and inspected the gash on his cheek. "Hm, interesting." He said as he wiped the blood away and found the area had a small scab. "Is this wound new or old?" He asked Remy.

"New." Remy responded. He felt a little shaky as the doctor continued to check him over. He remembered his encounter with Dr. Windsor and it made him shudder. He doubted Hank would be the same way, but at the moment, he wanted away from the doctor as soon as possible.

"Now, this we will have to be fixed." Hank indicated to the bullet in his arm.

"It be fine." Remy told him and tried to get off the bed. Hank put a massive hand on his shoulder and kept him there.

"This could turn into an infection, my young friend. If that happens, you will be living down here for a few weeks." He warned Remy, who scowled. He looked over at Ororo, who gave him a 'do as your told' look.

"Oui." He turned away. Hank instructed him to remove his shirt and careful around the arm. He went off to a side cart and grabbed the supplies he would need to dislodge the bullet.

Ororo helped Remy get his injured arm out of the sleeve and lift it over his head. She shot a glare at Jubilee who whistled when Remy had his shirt off. "Dang, I think he's more ripped then Piotr." Jubilee whispered to Kitty, who was starring.

"Now, please come over here and lay your arm down." Hank told Remy as he sat on the opposite end of a table. Remy hesitantly sat down and laid his arm down across a white cloth. To one side was a scalpel, needles, large tweezers, and gauze. Hank picked up the needle, causing Remy's red eyes to widen. "You should only feel a pinch." He told him.

"Put de needle down, unless y' want to be bald." Remy threatened. Ororo walked over.

"Remy, you need to have it done, or it will hurt a lot more when Hank removes the bullet." She warned him. Remy still shook his head.

"Den I'll take de pain." Remy told her.

"I wouldn't recommend doing that." Hank suggested to him.

"I don't want de shot; I don't need to have it. I'd rather have it hurt like hell den have de shot." Remy told him. Ororo stared down at Remy curiously. She never recalled him being afraid of needles.

'What happened to you when you were with Weapon X?' She wondered. She watched Hank clean the wound before began the process of removing the bullet. Remy clenched his teeth together, but did not make a sound. His other hand was in a tight fist.

"They're all locked up, again." Logan said to Ororo as he entered the med lab. He had gone into the control room of the Danger Room and activated it to send out sleeping gas for Deadpool and Sabertooth. Once both of them were knocked out, he threw them into two separate cells.

"All done." Hank said as he pulled the bullet out and dropped it to the side. He placed the gauze over the wound that began bleeding. "I must suggest getting stitched for this." He told Remy, who glared at him.

"Does it involve a needle or anythin' else pointy?" He asked the doctor. Hank sighed and shook his head yes. "Den, non. It be fine." He responded. Hank sighed again and began bandaging up the Cajun's arm. He knew this was not the best thing for Remy to have an open wound like this without stitches, but if the patient refused to have it done, he could not force it on him. All he could do was clean up the wound, bandage it, and check on it again.

Once Hank was done, Remy stood up and went to get his shirt. "And I thought I had a lot of scars." Logan commented.

"Why y' checkin' me out?" Remy looked at him with disgust. "Here I was just beginnin' to tolerate y', homme. Why y' gotta ruin it?"

Logan growled and folded his arms. "Don't make me puke." The one scar that had caught his eye was the one on his abdomen. The scar ran from his front and showed up in the back. There was also a faded scar that ran down his spine and looked like it had been sewed up.

"No, keep it off!" Kitty whined as Remy put his shirt back on. Logan looked at the young girl.

"Somethin' ya wanna tell Piotr?" He asked causing her to blush.

"We appreciate a good body when we see one." Jubilee said proudly. Ororo sighed and walked out of the room. There were still other things that needed to be taken care of.

"Appreciate dat, petite." Remy smiled at her. Once his shirt was back on he sat down next to Rogue.

"Come on." Logan shooed the two girls out of the room.

"Hey, but we were here first!" Kitty complained as Logan pushed them out.

"You're going to leave her in there with Gumbo?" Jubilee asked. "You actually trust him?"

Logan looked back at Remy, who was looking at Rogue and then bowed his head. He didn't tell anyone, but he got to catch a glimpse of the security video that recorded Gambit and Sabertooth's conversation. He took the tape and destroyed it, not wanting anyone else to view it in case they tried to bring it up to him. The last thing he would want to hear was the retelling of how Belladonna was killed. "Yeah." Logan told them and shut the door.

'I'll give ya a chance, better not blow it.' Logan thought to himself before walking down the hall.

Remy brushed a piece of white hair out of Rogue's face to get a better look at her. "Sorry, I wasn't dere for y', chere. Guess I can't protect anybody. Should have blown dat blue woman to de side to help y'." He said to himself. He held her hand in his and ran his fingers over her soft ones.

"I know we didn't get dat much time together, especially with dat pest dat came with us. Ain't de most honest with y' on something's in my past, but it's mostly filled with stuff I'd rather forget." He let go her hand. "I care about y', chere. Y'r one of de most beautiful and strongest woman I know. Ever since I met y', I felt a connection." He said and almost fell out of his seat when he saw Rogue's eyes were open.

"Ah felt it too." She told to him.

**New Orleans**

Ghis Ghis knocked on the door to his boss's office and waited for a reply. The door opened and he looked annoyed. "Bonjour Gris, it's been a while and here I thought y' didn' like moi." The man said that opened the door and hugged Gris Gris, who shoved him.

"I am here to see de matriarch." Gris Gris snarled at the red haired man and moved pass him to see the woman sitting behind the desk. "Madame." Gris Gris bowed before standing in front of her. "I have news dat might interest y'. I received a phone call from someone wantin' to take out Remy LeBeau." He stated to the woman. She leaned back in her chair and tapped her fingers against the arm rest.

"Interestin', dat boy always did like to cause a lot of trouble. Y' have de address?" She asked him as she leaned forward and placed her elbows on the desk and her chin rested on her hands. She had been having Remy tracked ever since he was banished from New Orleans and knew where he had been over the past few years.

"Oui, got de addresses." Gris Gris answered and handed a paper to her.

"Well den, gather some people together, we gonna pay a visit." She smiled at Gris Gris before standing up and leaving the office.

**End of Chapter 21**

A/N: Was it necessary to have Remy take his shirt off in the med lab? Not really, just wanted an excuse to have him take it off. **I decided to take a break from this story for a while, I'll probably come back to it at the end of April when school is finished, its been kind of hard to keep up with studying, work, and updating. **

**Character Info**: Angel (Warren Worthington III) and Beast (Hank McCoy), according to my roommate, neither one of them joined the X-Men at the end of the movie. I'm changing that part to where they did join. Though, technically, if you take Angel out of the movie, you would never know. The poor guy got cheated.

Special Thanks to: **RogueNya, Star-of-Chaos, tfobmv18, soficmac16, frostbit,** and **mylove24. **Thanks for reviewing. Also another thanks to the 120 people who have added this fic to their Story Alert!

Sneak Peek:

"Y'r not mad?" Remy asked her and raised an eyebrow. Rogue smiled at him and shook her head.

"What would ya want me ta do? Get all whiny and dump ya in Antarctica?" Rogue joked with him.

"Dis Cajun hates snow." Remy replied with a pout.


	22. So Far

I originally didn't plan on updating until the end of April but I can't study at the moment. My dumbass roommate just spoiled the entire X-Men Origins Wolverine movie for me and my other roommate. For this, she is being punished and now I have a need to write. And, anything that was in the movie, I am not putting in the fic because I've already got the story line done and not changing it!

Disclaimer: I own nothing, if I did I would go to Fox and beat the crap out of them for what they did to Deadpool!

* * *

"How much did y' hear?" Remy asked as he looked at Rogue, who rubbed her head. She didn't know how she did it, but she found her way back to the conscious world. She had been wondering until she heard a voice talking to her and followed it.

"From the start of ya talkin' about how beautiful Ah was." Rogue responded to him and slowly sat up. Her body felt weak with fatigue and decided against trying to get out of bed at the moment.

"What y' talkin' about was? Y' are beautiful." Remy told her with a smile, causing her to blush. Not even Bobby said that to her. He would tell her she looked nice once in a while, but never flattered her like this.

"Where have ya been? Ah didn't see ya with the rest of the X-Men?" She asked him. She was happy to see him, but was curious of where he had been. Remy sighed knowing he would have to tell her the truth. If he didn't, Logan or one of the others would tell her and it would be better coming from him instead.

"After dat Magnet or whatever his name was captured y', de people who I used to work for came after me because I didn't do a job dat I was supposed to do." Remy replied and looked up at her.

"What kind of job?" She asked him suspiciously. 'Was he also followin' me?' She thought to herself.

"Years ago, a man named William Stryker came to my home in New Orleans askin' for de best thief to steal some files for him." He saw the shocked look on Rogue's face. She recognized that name immediately. "My pere sent me to do it, knowin' dat I be one of de best in de world at fourteen years old. Stole de files for him, and most of dem on location of mutants. He didn' know, but I kept a copy of de information and of everythin' in his computers. We had an agreement, I get him de files, I be safe, paid, and his team leave me alone." Remy explained to her as he recalled memories he hadn't thought of in years.

"De man ain' good at keepin' track of his animals, cause years later one of dem came after me and killed my brother Henri and Genevieve. Didn't know till just now, he also killed Bella." He whispered and looked away. Rogue could see the hurt expression on his face. She remembered their talk of Genevieve and even though he said she wasn't important to him, to see someone you care about die in front of you had to be hard. She wrapped the bed sheet around her bare hand and held it out to him. He gave a small smile and took it.

"Anyway, went after him, Sabertooth." He said, another name Rogue recognized as one of Magneto's ex-members. "Dat was when dis little hairy fella came across my path lookin' for him too. I believe y' call him, Wolverine." He looked at her and saw her eyes widened.

"Ya knew him before he lost his memory?" She asked him.

"Oui, up until he lost his memory. We traveled for a few months to find Sabertooth. Once we did, Wolverine decided he wanted to take on Sabertooth alone and stabbed me and left me dere. When I woke up, I was in a prison for mutants and de only thing I had on my mind was kickin' his ass. Though, recently found out if he hadn't, I could have been killed from psycho-Deadpool. Some friends helped me escape from dere and we hid till dey stopped lookin' for us. Went back to searchin' for Sabertooth and Wolverine when dis man called and said he would give me de information to findin' Sabertooth if I brought him Wolverine in. He said he would give me de information on where he was. Thought it was a good deal and found out dat my petite Stormy lived here and figured it would be de best way to get in. Watched him for a while, even sparred with him. I was plannin' on takin' him down when I laid eyes on y'." He told her and kissed her hand through the blanket.

"Saw y' were gonna leave and didn' want to see anythin' happen to y' because y'r powers started actin' up." He continued until Rogue cut him off.

"Is that why ya went with me? To get ta Logan?" She stared at him. She swore to herself, if he said yes, she would send him flying across the room.

"Non, didn' even know y' were close to him. It only made it harder. Den dat whole thing went down with bucket head, and de man from Weapon X not happy with dis Cajun and had his weirdo doctor come in. Dey sent me back here after pokin' me with dis needle to control mutants. I guess I attacked Wolverine, don't remember." He told her and leaned back in his chair.

"I'm guessin' Logan got ya in the arm?" Rogue asked him while looking at the bandage.

"What? Dis? It's a little scratch." Remy said with a smile. He ran his hand over hers and squeezed it from in between the sheet. "Y'r not mad?" Remy asked her and raised an eyebrow. Rogue smiled at him and shook her head.

"What would ya want me ta do? Get all bitchy and dump ya in Antarctica?" Rogue joked with him and Remy pouted.

"Dis Cajun hates snow." Remy replied. They heard the door slam open and saw Monet waltz back in and go over to the bed she had been laying on and looked under it. She had lost one of her shoes and figured it had been left down here.

"Don't look at me, freak." Monet snarled at Rogue as she glanced at the girl in the bed. Remy glared at the girl. "As soon as I pack my stuff, I'm out of here."

"Hope ya have a good life and people treat ya the same way ya treat them." Rogue told the brown haired girl, who rolled her eyes at her.

"Whatever, vampire. I wouldn't stay another night here even if I was paid." She stated before finding her shoe and going back to the exit. If she had looked down she would have noticed the laces to her shoe were glowing a light pink. As soon as she got into the hallway, Rogue and Remy heard a light pop and Monet cursing about her destroyed shoe.

"Who was dat charmin' fille?" Remy asked Rogue, who shook her head.

"Someone who can't grow up. She and her friends made my life a livin' hell here. They are the reason I am stuck in here." She told him and Remy was about to get up from his chair when Rogue stopped him. He had rules of no hurting a lady, but sometimes, there were exceptions. "She ain't worth it. Her and her friends will know what it's like one day."

'Should have destroyed de whole shoe.' Remy thought to himself before another came to him. 'How de hell did I do dat?' He added, but his face showed no expression of worry.

"So, are ya still gonna try ta turn Logan in." Rogue asked him with a serious look on her face.

"Non, I got another things on my mind den to worry about dat old man. Unless he piss me off, den I'll blow up his cigar collection." Remy responded to her, causing her to laugh. He stared into her eyes. "Y' so beautiful when y' smile. Makes y'r eyes light up brighter den de stars." He whispered to her.

"Ya practice that line a lot?" She asked him, still smiling.

"Only with y'. When was de last time someone treated y' nice? A little champagne, candlelight, magic time." He asked her, his red eyes shining softly in the light.

"Ya askin' me out, Swamp Rat?" Her emerald eyes looked into his ruby ones as she asked.

"And if I am, River Rat? What do y' say?" Remy waited for her answer. Rogue thought about it and saw a card in his breast pocket.

"If the card is seven or higher, yes." She responded to him. Remy chuckled as he remembered the game he made up on the bus. Remy took the card and handed it to her, not looking at it. "Ah guess that's a yes." She said and turned the card around to reveal the Queen of Hearts.

"She never fails me." Remy said as he kissed Rogue's hand again.

"Ya do know that Ah can't touch ya, right? Ah'll end up absorbin' your memories and powers. Unfortunately, it's part of me, not a part that I like." She whispered. She half expected him to get up and leave.

"If y'r tryin' to scare me off, y'r doin' a bad job. I adore everythin' about y', Rogue. From de first time I met y' till now." He told her.

"Maire. My name is Marie." She said to him. They heard the door open and saw Bobby and Lorna enter the room.

"Miss. Munroe told us you were up. She said when you are up to it, you're coming with us." Bobby said to Rogue. She looked between the two confused.

"Why?" She asked. Lorna gave a small smile and replied.

"We're going to help you learn to control your other powers."

**Cell Area- That Night **

Sabertooth snarled as he paced back and forth in the cell area. He clenched his clawed hand into a fist, drawing blood and opening a small wound that would soon close. "You're making me dizzy." Deadpool told him as he watched the feral mutant walk back and forth.

"I got a idea, why don't we sing a little song. I'll start first then you can come up with. Oh, I want chicken, I want liver. Meow Mix Meow Mix please deliver!" Deadpool sang and stopped when Sabertooth slammed himself into the glass wall and broke it. The glass shattered to the ground. The bigger man turned and looked at Deadpool.

"Ever sing that again, I'll rip your throat out." He snarled before leaving.

"Hey, have you been talking to Omega Red too? He's going to be mad! Only he gets to threaten to rip my throat out!" Deadpool yelled down at the hall. "Well, no use in staying here." He decided before he went to find a way to break out, again.

**Cerebro-Next Day**

Betsy had been searching for any signature that came close to Professor Xavier or a telepath at a high level for the past three hours. She sighed in frustration as she still couldn't find anything.

She took off the helmet and placed it down. "Still nothing?" Warren asked her. She sighed and stood up next to him.

"No, there is no indication of him anywhere." The blond responded. "I know this is impossible. I think he is hiding somewhere that I cannot detect. He will make his presence known soon I suspect."

"Hopefully it's not for a while. Mr. Summers said we were to meet in the War Room, something about some mutant control place has reopened." He told her and escorted her out of Cerebro.

She leaned against him and wrapped an arm around him. It still seemed weird for him not to have his wings. "How long does it usually take them to grow back?" She asked him as she ran a hand down his back. She missed the feel of his soft feathery wings.

"Usually they grow back in a day or two. I'm sure they'll be back soon." Warren responded. He didn't want to tell her, but it was starting to worry him that they hadn't grown back yet. The process was painful with the bones coming out of his back, but rewarding when he was finally free and able to fly.

They two entered the War Room to find everyone else already seated around a huge circular table in the middle. "Sorry we're late." Warren apologized as they took a seat between Bobby and Hank.

"There are a few things that needed to be reported. Due to the scare that has been going around the school with everything that has happened, everyone in this room is all that is left." Scott announced to everyone. "I also wanted to address, Sam, Jono, and Lorna, that you do not have to participate in any X-Men activities if you do not want to. Some of the missions we go on are very dangerous and we do not want to force you into this." He told the three students.

"Ah don't know about the rest of ya, but Ah wanna go." Sam told Cyclops and the other two nodded.

"Then welcome to the team, Cannonball, Polaris, and Chamber." Cyclops told them with an approved nod.

"As for Magneto, we've been keeping tabs on him and found he is still without his powers for now. Is there any news on where the Shadow King is located?" Storm asked Psylocke who shook her head no.

"Sorry, love, but I have not been able to get a trace of him. I will keep trying." Psylocke told the white haired woman.

"Wait, so is it Shadow King or Professor Xavier? I mean, when Miss. Grey turned into the Phoenix, we mostly called her Jean." Iceman stated to the group, missing the sad expression on Scott's face at the mention of Jean.

"I believe it would be better to call him Shadow King. Professor Charles Xavier is a kind man who would never invade a person's mind without permission. This creature that has possessed Charles is not him and I believe it makes it easier to fight him knowing that." Beast told the young man.

"What about the Brotherhood? I mean they are still out there." Shadowcat mentioned to the group.

"At the moment, they seem inactive. Should they try to strike, Cerebro will warn us." Cyclops answered.

"Dese meetings always dis borin'?" Gambit whispered to Rogue with a yawn.

"Pretty much. Ah always thought they liked ta hear themselves talk." She whispered back and got a disapproval look from Wolverine.

"Now, onto our newest problem, as some of you know Weapon X has reopened under a new director. From we have learned from Chamber, they opened a few months ago and had captured mutants, who destroyed their facility. At the moment, we are unable to locate the new one. Gambit, I was hoping you would share what you know of this." Storm asked Gambit, who was shuffling his cards in his hand.

"Don' know where it is. De new director is a guy named Malcolm Colcord. Really ugly guy whose face is messed up. Really pissed off at Wolverine for messin' it up when he got his metal skeleton. Bunch of creepy scientists. Dey want to make a new weapon and destroy him." Gambit pointed at Wolverine who growled. "Said dat dey wanted one dat was controlled." He finished and sat back in his chair.

"They are also going to capture more mutants." Deadpool said at the entrance of the door, startling everyone.

"How the hell did ya get out?" Wolverine snarled and jumped over the table and shoved his claws in Deadpool's face.

"Sabertooth said if he had to listen to me anymore, he was going to eat himself. I was kind of hoping to see it, but he broke out instead and said he'll see his favorite play toys later." He responded.

"What the hell do ya want?" Wolverine growled at him and Deadpool put his hands up.

"Hey, can't we all be friends. Now put the pointy things down. I actually want to help. Those assholes at Weapon X messed me up. I was going to be a lawyer before they did this to me. Just seeing the pain in a person's eyes as they know they are going to jail does something to a guy." He sighed.

Cyclops looked over at Storm as if to say it was her call. She glared at the X-Men leader and looked back between Deadpool and Wolverine. "Deadpool, we will allow you to help under certain conditions. There is no: killing, maiming, cutting off limbs, making people bleed, throwing any object at anyone, no making fun of Wolverine, and driving people crazy. Did I miss one?" She asked.

"TALKING!" All the X-Men shouted.

"Can I breathe?" Deadpool asked Wolverine, who growled again. "I was joking. I love you guys. I only wanted to play with Logan. Besides, us mutants got to stick together." He said to the group.

"Y're not a mutant." Gambit told him.

"Fine, us X-Men have to stick together." Deadpool corrected himself.

"Yer not a X-Men." Wolverine growled to him. Deadpool shrugged and sat down next to Gambit, who did not look happy. He had been stuck next to the mercenary for hours and it drove him nuts.

"Ya know, you and him sound the same, are you related?" Deadpool asked Gambit and looked over at Wolverine, who snarled at launched himself at Deadpool and Gambit pulled out a card and charged it. "Um, I was just kidding. I swear you people can't take a joke." He defended himself.

"Y' sick." Gambit muttered as Wolverine took his seat, glaring at Deadpool. Why had Storm allowed this guy to stay was beyond him.

"What you never know? Like she could be related to a villain. I can see it." Deadpool pointed at Rogue, who took a glove off. Remy put a hand up to stop Rogue.

"Non, chere. De last thing y' need is him inside y'r head." He told her and turned back to Deadpool. "I will pay y' three million dollars to shut up." Gambit told Deadpool, who looked at him.

"Yeah right. Like you really have that kind of money." Deadpool laughed, but stopped when Gambit took out his check book and started writing it out. Rogue leaned over and watch him make out the

'Holy crap, is that real?' She thought to herself as Gambit handed the check to Deadpool, who starred in shock at the check.

"It's probably fake." Deadpool said and ripped it up. Gambit shrugged and closed his check book and slipped it back into his coat pocket.

"Y'r loss, homme." Gambit smirked and Deadpool looked down at the scraps of paper and began piecing them back together.

"Hey, if I annoy you enough, will you pay me that much?" Iceman called down to Gambit.

"Non, I just blow up y'r Batman dolls." Gambit responded to him, and got a glare from Iceman.

"THEY ARE ACTION FIGURES!" Iceman yelled down. Storm was rubbing her head. She couldn't understand how this meeting got out of control.

"Can we please get back to topic. We need to find the Weapon X facility and shut it down before they can capture and experiment on more mutants." Storm told the group. Gambit reached into his pocket and found his cell phone.

"I know someone who could get de information for us. Only one question, y' touch anythin' in my room?" He asked Storm. The item he needed was not important enough for him to bring it with him, but could be disturbing to anyone who saw it.

"No one was in there as far as I know." Storm replied. Gambit smiled and got out of his chair and dialed a number.

"So what are we gonna do when the Shadow King pops up?" Rogue asked Cyclops and Storm.

"Unfortunately, we have not planned that far. It is hard to say what he is capable of doing until he makes himself known. We know Magneto's powers were transferred over to him, but we don't know if it is his full potential."

"Bonjour, mon ami. Been a-" Gambit said into the phone and was then interrupted. He pulled the phone away from his ear and a few of the others could hear yelling and swearing. "Shut up, I need y' to do somethin' for me." More yelling. " Yes I know y' told me dat, but I got somethin' y' might want." The phone went silent. "I got a disc y' might want, unless y' would like me to put it on youtube or somethin' like dat." Gambit grinned as he got the answered he was looking for. "Need information on de new Weapon X facility." He waited and got an answer. "Bon. See y' tomorrow." He flipped the phone shut and sat back down. "It be here by tomorrow." He smirked.

"You didn't give them the address." Cyclops commented to Gambit, who smirked.

"Don' need to. He knows how to find me." Gambit replied and Cyclops gave a disapproving look.

"Can this person be trusted? The last thing we need is another problem around here." Cyclops said to the now annoyed Cajun.

'Trust him, hell no.' Gambit mused to himself. "It be fine. Unless y' got another option, he be comin' here tomorrow." Cyclops looked over at Storm again, who nodded approvingly.

"Rogue." Storm turned to the young woman who had her arm resting on the desk with her knuckles resting against her head. She looked up a bit startled. "How are your powers coming along?" She asked.

"Bobby was helpin' me with controllin' my ice powers. I think I almost have a hang of it. Except if I go into ice form, it takes me an hour or two to get out of it. Controlling metal is a lot easier." Rogue reported to Storm. Lorna sat back in her seat and looked away. It hadn't been easy for her when her powers had manifested.

"Tomorrow you will be practicing with Psylocke, Shadowcat, and myself." Storm told the young girl, who nodded in response. It had been hard work, but at least now the voices in her head were gone and her borrowed powers were becoming controllable.

"But Piotr is taking me to the movies." Shadowcat whined and looked at Piotr.

"It is okay, we can go to the later showing." Piotr whispered to her.

"Why am Ah trainin' with you?" Rogue asked Storm. She hadn't absorbed the white haired woman and didn't understand why she would teach her to use her powers.

"I am going to teach you to fly." Storm replied. Rogue's face went pale.

"Ah don't really need ta learn how ta fly. Ah'll be fine." Rogue told her. She still hated flying and there was no way anyone was going to get her to do it.

"It is not hard. You might like it." Storm smiled at Rogue before going onto the next issue.

"Ah doubt it." Rogue grumbled and folded her arms and sat back in her chair. 'Ah hate my powers.' She thought to herself. A part of her still wanted to hunt down the cure to get rid of her powers, but now it didn't seem as bad now she could control her other powers. However, she still couldn't touch and there was no one that could teach her how to use the one power she needed control over the most. She looked over at Gambit, who started playing solitaire and wasn't paying attention to what Storm or Cyclops were saying.

'Why does he still wanna be with me if Ah can't touch?' She thought to herself. 'Does he think that it's just a faze and Ah'll be able to touch sooner or later? Ah may never be able ta touch.' She began to feel depressed and Gambit looked over at her sensing her sadness through his empathy. He gave her a smile and took her gloved hand in his. As soon as their hands made contact, she felt a warmth fill her and she felt love and happiness.

"That is all for now. You are dismissed." Cyclops told the group.

**Upper Hallway**

Piotr escorted Kitty down the hallway of the dormitory. It was the quietest the couple had ever heard it. There were no kids running around or people hanging outside their rooms. "I have a surprise for you." Piotr told Kitty and dragged her down to his room. She brown hair girl giggled and followed him down to the room and opened it.

"Oh my god!" Kitty put a hand over her mouth. On his bed was a drawing of her sitting by a window and looking toward the sky. "It's beautiful." She walked up to the bed and ran her hand over the picture, almost afraid to touch it. Next to the picture was a stuff purple dragon with a white bow. She turned to Piotr and kissed him. "Thank you so much. I love it." She kissed him again and hugged him. He wrapped an arm around her.

Kitty sat on his bed with the stuffed dragon on her lap while looking at the picture. "I knew you could draw, but I thought it was mostly comics and that. I didn't know you were this good." She smiled up at him as he sat next to her and wrapped a arm around her waist.

"What are you going to name this guy." Piotr asked and tapped on the stuff dragon's head.

Kitty picked up the dragon and looked at it. It's head was bigger than the rest of its body and it wore a collar around its next with a lock on it. "How about Biglock?" She asked him. He tilted his head and shook his head.

"It doesn't seem like a Biglock." He told her. Kitty tapped her finger to her chin and began to think of a better name for her stuff animal.

"I know, Lockhead! I'm not changing it! That's his name!" She demanded and hugged the dragon.

Piotr laughed. "It sounds good."

**Unknown Location**

Dr. Windsor sat in a booth in a diner looking at his watch and leaned back in his seat. He was meeting a mercenary he had hired to retrieve some samples for him. He had to go outside of Weapon X because they already stuck their noses in his work. "Are you the sinister man everyone says you are?" A man wearing all black asked. His face was tan with a black mustache over his lip and his long black hair was pulled in a pony tail.

"Yes." The scientist smiled and motioned for him to take a seat. He had told the other man to use that code to find him. "Did you get what I need?" He asked.

The other man snorted. "It was easy. Get a few samples here and there. Shoot some people for information." The man chuckled as a waitress came over and asked what he would like. However, Windsor shooed her away.

"Excellent work, Scalphunter. I will send your payment once I get back." Windsor told him, but Scalphunter took out a gun.

"How about you pay me now, pops." Scalphunter sneered at Windsor. "I have had people say to me that they will pay me later, it just doesn't work that way." He smiled. "Hope you understand."

Windsor chuckled and activated a small device he held in his hand. All of the sudden, Scalphunter felt his face go numb as well as his arms and dropped the gun. "That would be an ideal threat on one of my colleges, but not on me. Now you can either give me what I need and still receive payment, or I can kill you and take it anyways." Windsor stated.

Scalphunter nodded and sat back as Windsor deactivated the device and set it on the table. It was a little project he had worked up before entering Weapon X. it detected the X gene in mutants and attacked it and rendered them useless. It still had some work to go, but it did it job today. "Very wise decision, my friend." Windsor smiled.

**End of Chapter 22**

Gambit #18 or #19 – Gambit had a check for Deadpool, Belladonna told him Gambit had no money so Deadpool ripped it up, only to find out it was real and wanted tape.

Also, don't own the lyrics to Meow Mix, it's been in my head all week because of this chapter

Special Thanks to: **Star-of-Chaos, RogueNya, laenamoradadeROGUE, tfobmv18, hollysirus, devilsspy **and LadyBella(you're a stupid movie wrecker!)

Sneak Peek for Chapter 23: Kitty comes into contact with her worst nightmare and…

"Why y' tryin' to hide behind dat?" He asked her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Ah don't wanna hurt ya. If Ah touch ya and ya don't wake up, Ah'd never forgive myself. Let's just forget about goin' out." Rogue said to him and was about to pull away from him when he spun her around to look into his eyes.

"Y' wouldn' forgive y'rself for that, but I'd never forgive myself if I didn't do dis." Remy told her before he kissed her, causing Rogue's eyes to widen.

* * *

"Aren't you a pretty little thing." The man at the door said to Kitty and leaned his arm up against the door.

'Damnit, why do I always get stuck answering the door!' She thought to herself as she looked at the handsome stranger.


	23. The Kiss

I am finally FREE of school for the next 5 months, and in those 5 months I will be doing a ton of updating. Thank you for being patient during this month, it's been very hectic.

Special thanks: **Star-of-Chaos, tfobmv18, RogueNya, laenamoradadeROGUE, Ash-digimon-luva, **and **The Copper Arabian**. Thank you for reviewing the last chapter, I really appreciate the feedback

Disclaimer: I own nothing! If I did, well, I actually wouldn't change a thing about movie Gambit at all. He gets an A in my book which is hard to do.

* * *

Next Day

Kitty and Jubilee walked down the stairs each had an arm around Lorna. The green hair girl did not look happy as they continued to speak with her. "So, do we have an understanding?" Jubilee asked Lorna, who rolled her eyes.

'This is so childish.' She thought to herself before answering. "Yeah." She muttered before breaking free of the two and went off to find Bobby. She couldn't believe the nerve of those two telling her how she was going to treat Bobby. She didn't plan on hurting him, unless he broke her heart, then he would be dead. She knew they had all been friends for a long time and were protective of each other, but it just showed that they didn't trust her.

She caught Jono on the way and looked at him and he averted his eyes. "You too?" She asked him. She could hear Piotr and Bobby talking in the recreational room and figured they were in there and told him the same thing.

_Yeah, break Jubilee's heart, she'll never shut up and they'll come after me._ Jono replied with a sigh. He didn't know where it had come from. He adored Jubilee and the thought of hurting her never crossed his mind. Now he didn't want to be in the same room as the others with them watching every move he makes.

"Don't worry; you're not the only one." She told him and squeezed his arm before going off to find Bobby. As she entered the room, she found Piotr and Bobby playing pool and chatting about going out later. Lorna stood in the doorway and watched as Bobby took his shot and missed the hole. "You need to practice." Lorna smiled at him as he looked up at her.

"Nah, I decided to be nice and let him win for once. It hurt's his self-esteem when he loses." Bobby told her and ignored the snort coming from Piotr.

"It is the opposite way, my friend." Piotr said and took his shot. Bobby ignored the taller man and walked over to Lorna and gave her a kiss and wrapped his arms around her.

"So how about we all go out later if they don't find this Weapon X place?" Bobby suggested to her. Lorna shrugged her shoulder and backed up a little and held his hands.

"I was actually kind of hoping to stay in. I don't really want to go out as a group." She answered him and hoped he wouldn't be offended. She was beginning to second guess herself on going out with Bobby. Obviously he and Piotr told Jono the same thing Kitty and Jubilee said to her. 'Does he not trust me?' She thought to herself. She knew they hadn't known each other that long, but it still hurt.

"That's fine." Bobby told her and kissed her on the lips again, not hearing Remy and Rogue walk in.

Rogue watched Bobby kiss Lorna and looked away. She didn't have the same feeling she had for him before and already knew that the two had liked each other. That is not what bothered her. It was hard watching other people have a normal relationship and she would never be able to have that. She looked over at Remy and wondered if he knew what he was really getting into.

"Y' alright, chere?" Remy asked and squeezed her shoulder. Rogue pulled her green jacket closer around her and shrugged.

"What's the point? We're never going to have any of this." She whispered and her eyes began to tear up. Her mind traveled back to when she had taken the cure and was able to touch again. It was one of the happiest moments in her life and it had been taken away again.

"Que?" Remy went to take her hand, but she pulled it back. She backed away from him and folded her arms over her chest.

"We're not going to be able to have anything normal. We can't kiss unless Ah knock ya out. We won't be able ta do anythin' normal couples do." Rogue turned away from him. Bobby and Lorna broke apart after hearing Rogue and both felt guilty. Bobby knew how much it hurt her not to be able to touch. He wished he had been more sensitive towards her when her powers came back.

"Chere, I don't care about any of dat. Bein' with y' is what's important." Remy tried to convince her and stood in front of her again.

"It's easy ta say that now, but in a few months ya'll be seein' everyone else bein' able ta kiss, hold hands, and everythin' and ya'll still won't be able ta get close ta me. It's not fair ta either of us ta try and pretend its okay." Rogue told him.

"Why y' tryin' to hide behind dat?" He asked her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Ah don't wanna hurt ya. If Ah touch ya and ya don't wake up, Ah'd never forgive myself. Let's just forget about goin' out." Rogue said to him and was about to pull away from him when he spun her around to look into his eyes.

"Y' wouldn' forgive y'rself for that, but I'd never forgive myself if I didn't do dis." Remy told her before he kissed her, causing Rogue's eyes to widen.

**Brotherhood House**

A plate floated in the air surrounded by a blue aura. It began to twirl itself in the air before it turned into cup. Suddenly, it went rocketing across the yard to smash into the wall next to Avalanche. "What the fuck!" He cursed and backed away. The Brotherhood had been helping Wanda control her powers better, but it seemed that always one of them would be on the receiving end of her experimentation.

"I didn't hit, so stop crying." Wanda muttered and looked over at John who laughed. Almost all of them were in the backyard since Mystique hadn't allowed Wanda to practice in the house after she tore down a wall that separated the kitchen and the dining room.

"It would have been funnier if you did." He whispered to her and walked up behind her. He opened his lighter and a small flame appeared. The flame shot out from the lighter and turned into a giant bat. "Let's see you control this." He said into her ear.

"You're kidding me with this, right?" She growled before raising her hand and concentrating. Suddenly, the bat cried and the flames disappeared and turned into bubbles. "You have anything that is more challenging?" She asked and folded her arms over her chest.

"I got one, but we can't do it here." He gave a mischievous smirk and put a hand on her shoulder. Her eyes narrowed and she grabbed his hand and squeezed it hard.

"What did I say about touching me?" Wanda turned and looked at him while still grabbing his hand.

"Not to or you'll hurt us." He cried before going down on his knees. Pietro sat in a lawn chair by the house and was snickering. He hated when guys flirted with his sister, but it was funny when she tortured them.

Inside the house, Mystique sat on the couch in front of the TV watching the local news with Revanche standing behind observing the speaker. "Should I kill him?" The Asian purple haired woman asked the blue woman. Mystique said nothing as her yellow eyes watched the man speak.

"They are a threat to us! We cannot allow them to roam free without knowing what they can do! We have already seen what mutants like Magneto can do, you know as well as I do that there are more out there that want to make us freaks like them. I say, we strike before they can kill us all or destroy the world." A man with brown hair said into the microphone and pounded the podium with his fist. He wore a grey suit with a black tie. The screen right below his face read, Graydon Creed.

"No." Mystique said, not taking her eyes off of the man. "He will be dealt with on my terms." She responded and got up from the couch. "Gather the others; we have some work to do." She ordered Revanche, who nodded and went to gather the rest of the Brotherhood.

Mystique turned back to the screen to watch the man continue to argue how mutants needed to be abolished. "You have been a bad boy, son." She said before turning the television off.

**X-mansion**

"Dang." Lorna commented and folded her arms over her chest as she watched the couple kiss. "How long does it take for him to be knocked out?" Lorna asked Bobby, whose mouth was hung open. Finally, Remy and Rogue broke apart, Rogue was still in shock.

"Dat's not so bad." Remy smiled down at her. "From de way y' made it sound; it was goin' to kill me." He looked over at Bobby, whose mouth was still open. "Y' just a whiny little bitch, ain't y'. Y' probably faked de passin' out."

"Ah didn't absorb ya?" Rogue looked at Remy, her eyes wide. She looked down at her gloved hands and then slowly removed them. "But, Mr. McCoy said that my powers were still on." She said to herself, ignoring everyone stares.

"Well you haven't touched anyone." Piotr commented.

"Or it just be my electric personality." Remy grinned at her. Rogue rolled her eyes and jammed a finger in his chest.

"You wish, swamp rat." Rogue told him as Logan came into the room.

"Ororo's waitin' for ya in the Danger Room." Logan told her and noticed she took off her gloves, something she rarely did. "What's goin' on?"

"Rogue can touch Gambit." Bobby muttered and folded his arms over his chest. He secretly enjoyed the glare Logan was giving Remy.

"Can Ah try somethin'?" Rogue asked Logan and waited for him to shake his head 'yes'. She touched his arm and felt a sudden rush of memories enter her mind and pulled away quickly as lines began forming on his arm.

"Shit." Logan cursed and shook off the effects from being absorbed. The effects didn't last long, but they made him feel disoriented for a few seconds. "Ya still got your powers." He said. Rogue looked down disappointed and looked over at Remy not understanding why her powers didn't work on him.

"Maybe it was just a one time thing or somethin'." Rogue said sadly as Remy took off his fingerless gloves and held his bare hand out for her. She looked into his eyes, not believing he trusted her enough to touch his hand knowing it could hurt him. She still couldn't believe he kissed her knowing what her powers could do. She smiled warmly at him and took his hand and didn't feel the pull she normally did.

"I don't get it." Bobby commented as Remy and Rogue continued to hold hands and Remy was not passing out.

"Maybe it doesn't work for the person you truly love." Lorna suggested and leaned her head on Bobby's shoulder ignoring the disgusted look on his face.

"We'll figure it out later, kid; you're wanted in the Danger Room." Logan ordered to Rogue who looked sad. She was finally able to touch someone with her powers and she had to leave for a short while.

"Ah'll see ya later, sugah." Rogue told Remy before kissing him, which he happily returned. They were interrupted by a growl from Logan and split apart. Rogue gave one last wave to Remy before she left passing Kitty and Jubilee on the way out.

"Meet me in the kitchen in three minutes." Logan told Remy and turned to leave, not giving the younger man time to answer.

'Since when do I take orders from him? Never did before and not now.' He thought to himself as Lorna left the room to go up to her room, leaving him alone with Rogue's four friends.

"Okay Gumbo, let's get some things straight." Jubilee said as she and Kitty blocked the exit. The Asian girl had her arms crossed over her chest and looked serious.

"We don't want you hurting Rogue. She's been hurt enough in the past and if you do anything and we mean _anything _to make her cry, you're dead." Kitty warned Remy as Piotr and Bobby stood behind him.

'Mon dieu, dis is de funniest thing I've seen in de longest time. Dey're tryin' to intimidate me.' He thought to himself, but didn't let it show. "And whose fault would dat be. From what I heard, de Iceprick be de one dat hurt her last because she thought her friend was comin' on to him. I don't see why, he ain't nothin' to look at and he whines more den dat Pulse guy we met on de road." Remy stated and watched amusingly as the two girls narrowed their eyes. He wasn't going to back down to them and he wasn't afraid of any of them. If needed, he could have them all on the floor in a minute. Of course, he would have to explain to Rogue why he beat up her friends and have to face Storm's wrath.

"That was a mistake we are trying to fix. We learned from what happened and don't plan on letting anything like that happen again. None of us plan on hurting Rogue, but we don't really know you and since you are dating her now we are warning you not to hurt her." Piotr told Remy.

"Didn't plan on it, it would make me too much like de boy here." Remy looked at Bobby, who glared at him.

"Ya better not, bub, just remember this, most of us were taught by Logan and we could kick your ass." Jubilee told him.

'Mon dieu, now dey talk like him too. Dis place is more messed up den I thought.' Remy shuddered inwardly. "I'd never dream of hurtin' her." Remy looked down at Kitty and Jubilee with a soft smile, his eyes glowing red. "You have my word."

"Okay." Kitty and Jubilee whispered, starring into his eyes as Piotr came over to Kitty and took her by the hand.

"Let's go upstairs." He suggested to Kitty, who nodded. Jubilee followed after them.

As the girls and Piotr left, Bobby stayed behind and Remy looked at him expecting him to leave. He waited until the others were out of the room and looked Remy in the eyes. "We don't trust you; I personally would love it if you got your ass kicked out of here. Only reason why the others put up with you is because Storm for some reason likes you." Bobby sneered at the older man, who didn't seem fazed by the boy. "You can stay here as long as you want, but you'll never belong here." He said before leaving the room to join the others.

Remy sighed to himself. He didn't much care for these people either. Most of them seemed so stuck up and were higher than society. That's why he had liked Rogue. She didn't seem like the rest of them. She was real and not just a goofy teenager like the rest of them.

As far as he was concerned, he would put up with them. He had no plans on leaving the mansion, not yet anyways. He shrugged and decided to see what Logan wanted. 'Maybe I take my frustration out on him, non?' He smiled to himself before he entered the kitchen to find the older man sitting on a stool with a cigar in his mouth. "Thought dere was a no smokin' rule?" Remy asked and sat across from Logan.

"Ain't lit." Logan muttered and took it out of his mouth. He didn't know why he still stuck with the no smoking in the mansion rule. Even though Xavier was not there to enforce the rule, he still stuck by it.

"What do y' want homme?" Remy asked him and took out his deck of cards and flicked the cards from one hand to the other. Of all the people he didn't trust in the mansion, Logan was number one and he didn't like sitting across from him or his claws.

"Ya knew me before I lost my memory?" Logan asked him, already knowing the answer. There were few people he could talk to about what he had done before. One had been William Stryker, but he was dead and Logan felt good riddance to him.

"Oui." Remy replied and shifted on the stool.

"What was I like before?" Logan asked him.

"Y' whined a lot about everythin', de entire universe revolved around y'. Y' pretty much seem like de same since we last met years back." Remy answered him with a shrug. He didn't know what the other man was looking for. "Still don't like y'." Remy told him.

"The feelin' is mutual." Logan responded to him. "So, ya gonna try to kill me some more?" Logan narrowed his eyes at Remy, his cigar hanging out of the side of his mouth. The Cajun cracked a small cocky smile.

"I believe I owe y' for de stab y' gave me when I had dat shit in me." Remy told and started shuffling his cards.

"Ya also blew me on the other side of the Danger Room, blew up my bed and I let ya beat him in there one time. So we're even?" Logan crossed his arms and stared down the Cajun.

"_Ya sure this guy knows where Creed is?" Logan muttered as he pushed away a cob web in the abandoned mansion they entered. The lights were burnt out and it was complete dark. "Could have met somewhere besides here." He growled as he stepped on a bone. _

"_Why y' scared, old man?" Remy turned around and used his powers to charge a card to give them light. "Don' worry, if de boogy man come out, I protect y'." He teased before opening a door._

"_If ya are protectin' us, we're dead." Logan snorted before they went into a well lit room with a white haired man sitting behind a dark wooden desk. A bookshelf surrounded behind him and had cob webs and spiders running along it. _

"_Janos, long time." Remy greeted his friend with a hand shake. _

"_Figures you only contact me when you want something." Janos Quested muttered as Logan stared him down. "New pet? Didn't know you liked dogs." _

"_Careful, he ain't house broke yet." Gambit said before Logan elbowed him in the face and went to get the information from Janos._

_Another memory flashed in Remy's mind as he recalled how they found the building Sabertooth was supposed to be working in. "Nice plan." Logan muttered as he unsheathed his claws and cut away the door to the plane they were flying in that Remy's hotwired. _

"_Didn't see y' comin' up with anythin' better. Unless y' a good swimmer, dis was de only way dere." Remy grumbled as the alarm in the cockpit of the plane kept beeping and lights began to flash. "Piece of crap. Dis is why dey left it out in de open, nobody wanted it." He set the controls straight, but the plane started rocking back and forth and was slowly moving towards the water. Remy got up from his seat and joined Logan at the door. He held onto the side and looked down. _

"_Afraid of the water, pup?" Logan looked at him and Remy came back inside. _

"_Non, old people first. Don't break a hip on de way down." Remy raised his hand motioning Logan to jump first. Logan snorted and grabbed the back of the Cajun's collar. _

"_I insist." Logan said before tossing Remy out of the plane and into the water. _

Remy narrows his eyes at Logan. These were just little things that had happened while they traveled. Though he didn't want to kill Logan, there was one other memory he had refused to tell anyone and it also held his mistrust for the elder mutant.

"We far from even." Remystated to him.

"Fine by me, don't cry ta Rogue when ya get hurt." Logan said as he got up from the stool and went to the Danger Room.

**Danger Room**

"Ah really don't like this." Rogue cried as she hovered in the air sideways. She had started to learn to fly and it was not going so well. She spun around the other way and finally straightened herself out in the air.

"It takes time, child. You will get use to it." Ororo assured her as she floated next to Rogue and then backed up. "Now follow me." She commanded and flew higher.

Rogue frowned as she slowly moved towards Ororo. It felt so weird flying and didn't know how Storm or Angel were use to it. 'Well anyone makes me mad now Ah can always dump em outta the sky.' She laughed to herself as she finally made her way to Ororo.

"Very good." Ororo said to Rogue and then turned towards the window of the monitor room and nodded. The Danger Room changed to a battlefield.

"What are we…?" Rogue began to ask when a giant robot appearance before them. "Ya gotta be kiddin' me. Ah ain't ready for this!" Rogue told Ororo as the robot swung at the two women. Storm evaded the robot, but Rogue was not so lucky and was hit into the wall when the robot struck her.

Rogue rubbed her head as she sat up from where she had landed and glared at the robot. They had done sequences like this before in the Danger Room, but most of the time Iceman had always froze it, Wolverine cut its legs off, Shadowcat phased through the wires, Storm electrocuted it, or Cyclops blew it's head off. She had always been in the team when facing it, never by herself.

"Ya dirty rotten son of a bitch!" Rogue growled and flew at the robot, taking out the built in rage she had kept inside. She had always sat on the side and watched others fight while she was too weak to do anything. She always did what her parents told her to please them though it never was enough. This time she was going to be the one fighting and take matters into her own hands.

She dodged the punch it took at her and went behind it and punched it in the back of the neck, leaving a huge dent. 'That's right, Ah got super strength now.' She recalled from Monet's powers and began pounding into the robot, until it turned around and blasted her with its eyes.

Storm landed on the ground and watched Rogue get up and fight the robot once again. She was amazed at how fast Rogue was learning her new powers. They seemed to be more in control than before. She had spoken to Betsy who believed it was because the angry voices in Rogue's head didn't give her the concentration she needed to use the powers. Now that they were gone, it would come easier.

Rogue called on Magneto's powers and twisted the robot's arm off as it took a swing at her and sent it flying through its chest deactivating it and sending it crashing down.

Rogue landed on the ground and stared at the defeated robot. She did it all by herself. She never thought she would be able to go against anything in the Danger Room without someone watching her back. She knew Storm was there and could shut the program off, but the older woman had some confidence in her that she would be able to do it.

"I thought you were afraid of flying?" Ororo asked Rogue with a smile.

"Guess Ah got rid of that fear." Rogue replied and wiped her forehead. "We done for the day?"

"Yes, I guess so. You will have to meet Betsy again for practice with your telepathic abilities." Ororo told her and Rogue nodded. She was paying attention, but at the moment, she wanted to find Remy. "Then you are dismissed." Ororo told her. Rogue began walking out of the Danger Room and then stopped. She turned around.

"Ah just wanted ta thank ya for having confidence in me, even when Ah don't have it in myself." Rogue said to Ororo, who smiled.

"There is no need to thank me. We are a team. We need to push each other forward instead of backwards. I know you are a strong woman, Rogue. I knew from the first day you arrived here. It is sometimes harder for yourself to believe it." Ororo replied to Rogue, who nodded and finally left.

**Upstairs**

Lorna pulled Jono's elbow as they found Remy in the garage smoking a cigarette. Lorna gave him a soft smile as Jono closed the door behind him. "Didn't know y' in to de bad habit." He raised an eyebrow at the two.

_You know those things can kill you. _Jono told him and watched Remy grin.

"Ain't dat lucky yet." Remy replied and placed the cigarette between his lips. "What can I do for y'?"

"Actually, we wanted to talk to you since we are sure the others gave you the speech." Lorna told him and leaned against one of the cars. Remy chuckled as he exhaled the smoke and took it between his fingers as he folded his arms over his chest.

"De whole speech on 'if y' hurt Rogue, we kick y'r ass. We keepin' an eye on y'." He smirked as Lorna shook her head.

_Bobby threatened to freeze me balls off if I hurt Jubilee. Said she would never shut up if I broke her heart._ Jono commented with a shrug.

"I got Kitty and Jubilee who said they would turn my hair brown if I cheat on Bobby. They also asked me why I would want to go out with someone who had just broken up with his girlfriend. They thought it was a bit too suspicious." Lorna told them and folded her arms across her chest.

"Dey just protective of dere pack. Better to have de pups growl at y' den de big bad wolf." Remy told them, referring to Logan. He was sure the other man would probably confront him on not going near Rogue. 'Just a new reason to kick his ass.' He thought to himself.

_I guess._ Jono sighed. _I know they want to protect each other from hurt, but I almost feel like an outsider. They've all been with each other for so long and then we come in and there's no room for us. We are just the people looking in._

"You're not the only one." Lorna said and looked down at her feet. "I get along great with them, but after I decided to go out with Bobby, it was like they are watching me."

"Dey just protective of each other, dat's all. Y'r friends back home probably do de same to dem. Just ignore dem and act like dey never opened dere mouths." Remy told the two younger mutants. It didn't faze him what the other said to him, but he knew it probably might for them.

"Why don't we start our own little family? They got those who they feel comfortable around and consider family. I can ask Sam if he wants to join, though he spends a lot of time on the phone talking with his family. I heard he has a lot of them." Lorna suggested to them.

_Yeah, it would be nice to have someone who didn't look down on me and someone else I could trust. _Jono said. Remy smirked and agreed too.

"Hey, we go find Bobby and shove him in de closest after we beat de crap out of him if he hurt our petite soeur." Remy suggested to Jono, who chuckled.

"You're just saying that because you don't like him." Lorna glared at the Cajun as Rogue walked in. "We'll see you later." She said as her and Jono left the garage.

Rogue looked at the two mutants as they left. "Ya guys plannin' somethin'?" Rogue asked her boyfriend as she smirked at him.

Remy wrapped his arms around Rogue and kissed her before replying. "Non, just talkin' with dem." He didn't want to bother her with what the others had said. She had enough to worry about with her learning to use her powers. She shouldn't have to worry that her friends didn't trust him or the other two.

"Ya sure?" Rogue asked before the doorbell rang.

**Staircase**

Kitty walked down the stairs to meet Jubilee and the rest of her friends in the recreational room. Just as she got to the bottom, the doorbell rang throughout the house. She sighed knowing she would have to answer it since once her friends found their spot on the couch, there was no getting up after that. She opened the door to find a tall man with short black hair, one blue eyes and the other had a black patch covering the left**. **He wore a black jacket that came to his waist and a white button down shirt underneath with black pants to match. He looked down at her and smiled seductively.

"Aren't you a pretty little bird." Pete Wisdom said to Kitty and leaned his arm up against the door.

'Damnit, why do I always get stuck answering the door!' She thought to herself.

End of Chapter 23

**Side Notes**: Rogue fought a robot, it is not a sentinel because they do not exist…yet. Also, as to why Gambit can touch Rogue even though her powers are still working, chapter 16 gives a hint to why. Another note, Kitty and the others are looking out for each other. With all the drama that goes around the school they don't want more. They all will get along, (except for Gambit and Iceman still dislike each other), but I wanted to have two separate groups, new and old, it will come into being important later on. And, like some of the others, I am bad at describing what characters look like, so a picture of Pete Wisdom has been added in my profile or you can always google him.

**Special Announcement**: After some thought and looking over the notes I have for this story, I had written Rogue and Gambit's back story of before they had met the X-Men and since I keep having to do memory scenes, I've decided to write a prequel to this fic dealing with their childhood and till Rogue met Logan and Gambit came to the mansion. It will probably be up within a week since the story is pretty much outlined already, it will be called Angels and Demons. And no, it will not interfere with the updating of this story because I have 50% of this story already written.

Sneak Peek**: Words of Wisdom**

"THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!" Kitty screamed at Remy and kicked him in the knee. "You invited him here!"

Remy backed away from the fiery eyed brown haired girl. "Now, petite, I'm sure we can replace it." He told her with his hands up. 'Mon dieu, she madder den de Tante Mattie when me and Lapin hotwired' de car.' He thought to himself.

"That guy has done nothing but harass me! He's pinched, slapped, groped, and coped a feel every chance he gets! I won't be able to sit down for a week! And now he did this!" She screamed and pointed to the mess on the couch.

"You liked it, love." Pete smirked at Kitty, who raised her fist.

"It just means he likes y'. He ain't dat bad, he's worse when he's drunk." Remy told her and saw it didn't help the situation.


	24. Words of Wisdom

Hope ya enjoy.

Special thanks to: **Star-of-Chaos, Strawberry Moon Bunny, RogueNya, mylove24, Ash-digimon luva, tfobmv18**, and **laenamoradadeROGUE. **Thanks for taking the time to review.

Disclaimer: I own nothing

* * *

"Um, can I help you?" Kitty asked, almost afraid of the stranger. The last time she opened the door, it had been Deadpool and he had punched her across the room. Not to mention, this guy seemed like a creep. 'Okay a very hot creep.' She thought to herself.

"Oh I think I am good." Pete Wisdom said as he looked Kitty up and down. Normally, she would find an attractive guy checking her out flattering, but she didn't even know who this man was. He smirked and leaned in against the door frame.

"Hey, my eyes are up here!" She yelled at him as he started starring at her chest.

"Crickety woman, no need to yell. I know where your bleeding eyes are and wasn't looking at them." Pete muttered and stepped inside without being welcomed. Kitty was about to yell for Logan when Pete turned back to her. "Where's that bloody toerag, LeBeau?" He asked. Kitty's shoulders slump.

'This guy is supposed to help us? Why couldn't Gambit find someone who didn't act like a jerk.' She thought before answering. "Come on, I'll show you where Gambit is." She sighed before leading him down the hallway, but not before he pinched her ass. "Hey!" She turned around and glared at him. He only smiled down at her. "Keep your hands where I can see them!" She ordered.

"You sure you don't want to rephrase that, love? I can put them where you could see them all the time." Pete told her causing her to blush.

"Touch me and die." She warned one last time before going down the hallway, trying to keep at least ten steps ahead of him.

'This little bird is so cute when she's mad.' Wisdom thought to himself with a smile. He was going to see how far he could push this one. It usually didn't take long until he had a woman he set his eyes on. Sure there were always a few slaps and kicks, but they always came running to him in the end.

Kitty opened the door to the garage area where Rogue was sitting on top of a red convertible and Remy was leaning against it with a cigarette at the corner of his mouth. "Your FRIEND is here." She glared at Remy as Pete came into view. She moved around him not to go anywhere near him. As she got to the door she felt a slap to her ass and glared at him, but he had already turned around. "Asshole." She growled before running off to find Piotr and her friends.

'Did he do what Ah think he just did?' Rogue thought to herself. She knew Piotr would not take that news lightly. 'This boy better have a healin' factor.'

"So de British bastard finally arrived." Remy smirked as approached Pete, who did the same.

"I told you I wasn't supposed to be interrupted you Cajun son of a bitch." Pete told him and crossed his arms. "Then again, I guess you have to have a mother to be a son of a bitch, don't you?" He asked and Remy chuckled.

'That's mean.' Rogue thought to herself as her mouth fell open. She looked at Remy, but didn't seem offended at all. Instead, he seemed like he was expecting the comment.

"Dis comin' from de homme who got friendly with-" Remy began to say, but Pete put his index finger near Remy's face.

"Say one word of it and your dead." Pete warned and backed away from Remy. He knew the Cajun could wipe a card at him faster than the blink of an eye. "Where is it? I got your bloody information on that Weapon X place. I can't believe you wankers couldn't get it. It took me five bloody seconds." He muttered.

"Be back in a minute, mon ami." Remy told him and then looked back at Rogue. "Touch her, talk to her, I blow y' into millions of pieces." He warned. Pete rolled his eyes as the Cajun left and Jubilee, Lorna, Jono, Bobby, and Piotr came into the garage to see the man that had pissed off Kitty, who was trailing behind Piotr.

"That's him!" Kitty shouted and pointed a finger at the British man.

"Nice to see you again, petal. I see you can't get enough of me." Pete said making her blush and hide behind Piotr, who moved in front of the black haired man.

"That is no way to talk to my girlfriend." Piotr towered over the other man, but didn't seem to intimidate him.

"Really? She seemed to be enjoying the attention earlier. What's the matter big guy, lacking length in other places?" Pete stared at Piotr with his one eye. The bigger mutant raised his fist and was about to pound him into the ground when Bobby and Jono held him back and Rogue stepped in between Pete and Piotr.

"Easy there." She held out her hands in between the two. The last thing they needed was for Piotr to beat up the person who had information on where Weapon X was. Rogue had no problem after though.

"I'll be inside." Pete said before pushing past Piotr and went to the door, but not before coping a feel from Kitty's behind, who squeaked and clung to Piotr's arm.

"Can I phase his brain out of his head?" Kitty asked the others. "Seriously, I will be doing the world a favor."

"I thought the X-Men weren't supposed to kill?" Lorna asked the girl, who shot her a dirty look.

"Actually, I think we're allowed to kill once in a while. Miss. Grey killed a whole bunch of people and Professor Xavier went nuts. So basically, if Kitty pleads insanity and being possessed by someone, she might get away with it." Jubilee mused to herself.

"Don't be given her ideas." Rogue muttered to Jubilee, knowing Kitty might actually take it seriously. Though, she couldn't blame the girl if she ended up bashing the guys head open. She felt like doing it herself, though she knew she would have to explain to Remy why she killed his friend.

Inside the mansion, Pete Wisdom had lit a cigarette and was looking at the pictures in the hallway. Many of them were of students who had gone to the school. "Excuse me." He heard a voice and turned to see Scott Summers standing there. "I'm sorry, but we don't allow smoking in the school. We only allow it outside or in the garage.

Pete took the cigarette out of his mouth and blew the smoke into Scott's face. "I don't see any kids here, four eyes." He commented and put the cigarette back between his lips. Scott gritted his teeth and felt like taking off his ruby glasses just to show the stranger why he had them on.

"Cyke asked ya nicely, I won't be. If I can't smoke in here, then no one can." Logan said to Pete as he came up from behind Scott. He had sensed a new scent, also could sense that Kitty was pissed off at the moment. Logan unsheathed a claw and sliced the cigarette in half, enjoying the shocked expression on Pete.

"You bloody son of a-"He began to say when the teens had followed him into the hallway.

"I wouldn't call him that if I were you." Jubilee sang. She knew Logan could kick this guys butt in an instant. At the moment, none of them even knew if this guy was a mutant. He showed no physicals traits, but then again, most of them were able to hide their powers too.

"Why did you have to warn him?" Kitty hissed at her friend. She glared at Pete, who blew her a kiss.

"Let me guess, Gumbo's friend?" Logan glared at Pete as the young mutants nodded.

"Come on; let's get ya away from Logan." Rogue pushed Pete into the recreational room to have a seat, the others right behind her.

"If you don't mind me asking, what happened to your eye?" Lorna asked as she sat down across from Pete.

"Was doing a job and got captured by this lot of gits. They tortured me because I refused to give them information. They ended up cutting my eye out. I was left there for days with no food or water. I ended up having to use my own shirt to wrap around me head to keep the bleeding down. I felt myself going into insanity, until I was finally rescued." Pete answered and tapped his fingers against the chair.

"Dang, were you awake when they did that?" Bobby asked, coming interested as the others seemed to be too.

"Of course, what do you think torturing means? They're going to give me hugs and kisses." Pete snorted at Bobby's question.

"That must have been terrible." Kitty whispered, almost feeling sorry for the guy.

"It took so long to get used to only having one eye. There was nothing they could do to repair it. I spent months in despair and feeling suicidal." Pete sighed as Remy came into the room and snorted.

"Interesting y' say dat, cause last time it was y'r right eye dat was blind." Remy said as he held a disc in his hand.

"Git." Pete muttered as the others looked back at him.

_You made that story up? J_ono asked him.

"Oh my god, you are such a creep! I was actually feeling sorry for you!" Kitty yelled at him. Pete held his ears as she screamed.

"Works on those who don't know." He glared at Remy. "You wouldn't believe how many women buy that story." He smirked.

"All except for one." Remy smiled at him causing Pete to grumble.

"Except for that black eyed bitch you dared me to ask out." Pete stood up and walked over to Remy. They had gone out for a night and Remy had dared him to ask a woman sitting at the bar out. Pete figured it wouldn't be that hard until the woman pulled out a knife and threatened to castrate him. He learned that there were some women you just don't mess with. "So, have you gotten drunk here?" He asked, causing Remy to frown. He knew what happened to him when he got drunk.

"This is a school and no one is allowed to drink here." Bobby sighed disappointedly.

"What happens to him when he gets drunk?" Rogue asked. He was now her boyfriend and felt she needed a warning on some of his bad habits.

"Don't even say it." Remy glared at Pete, who grinned.

"Now why would I say anything bad about me friend Gambit. Gambit likes to drink sometimes. Gambit also likes to point out who is pretty. Gambit also likes to talk in bleeding third person for a night to the point where you want to kill Gambit, but Gambit will only laugh if you threaten Gambit. So you have to wait till Gambit passes out to get revenge." Pete answered and ignored the glare he was getting from Remy. "Anyone know Gambit's favorite color?"

"At least Gambit never got-" Remy began to say when Pete shot him a glare.

"I got the place you gits wanted." Pete interrupted Remy before he could finish. There were things some people didn't need to know. "Now, where is the video? I'm going to burn the bloody thing." He said as he traded the envelope over to Remy for a disc. "Fucking hell, LeBeau. You put it on DVD."

"Figured y'd like it better. Bring back old memories of y' and y'r _friend_." Remy told him. "Dat's de only copy." He added.

"What's on the disc?" Lorna asked him.

"None of your bleeding business." Pete shot at Lorna. Remy opened the envelope and looked over the layout of the Weapon X compound.

"Want to bring dese to Stormy?" He handed them to Rogue, who took it. He saw out of the corner of his eye Pete was reaching for a cigarette from the inside of his coat pocket and snatched it before he could light it. "I'm goin' to take Pete outside, de clean air in here is killin' him."

"Asshole." Pete muttered.

"Alright." Rogue smiled at Remy, who kissed her before going outside.

As soon as they got outside to the backyard, Remy handed Pete his cigarette's back. "Since when did you become such a poofter?" The black haired man muttered before lighting his cigarette.

"Believe me, de last thing y' wanna hear is one of dem comin' down on y' for somethin'. First night I stayed here, Stormy went over all dese rules of what not to do. She said if she caught me smokin' in here, she would make sure I'd never have kids." Remy shuddered. The first night he had stayed at the mansion, he soon started thinking it would have been easier to just stay in a hotel somewhere else and capture Wolverine when the other man was out. He had never stayed in a place with so many rules. No stealing. No smoking. No swearing. No making fun of the students, though he had to admit, some of them were kind of stupid and deserved it. Storm had gone on for thirty minutes of all the things he couldn't do, mostly because she knew his bad habits.

Pete leaned against the bricks of the mansion and inhaled his cigarette before exhaling it and letting the smoke out. "So, what scam are you pulling over this lot?" He asked Remy. "I know you don't like staying places to long. Not to mention, I saw the hairy ugly little man in the hallway, thought you were going to kill him."

Remy shrugged. "Dere were somethin's dat changed." He answered before lighting his own cigarette with his index finger. "As for dese people, dere ain' no scam. Originally I was plannin' on doin' my job and goin', but I didn' plan on meetin' someone like Rogue." He smiled as he looked down.

"Always was your bloody weakness. You see a nice skirt and forget when you're supposed to stop chasing it." Pete rolled his eyes.

"Ain't like any of de others. Dere is more to dis fille den tryin' to get her in bed." Remy answered.

"You're a love sick fool." Pete commented before a bird pooped on his shoulder. "Son of a bitch." He growled and watched the bird land in the tree. His fingers started to glow red and extend into sharp knives. "This was my favorite jacket." He growled and threw the knives at the bird, not hitting it, only scarring it off.

"Dat went well." Remy chuckled.

"Shut up." Pete muttered and leaned against the wall again and tried to dust the bird crap off his jacket.

"Tante always said if y' been a bad boy, karma gonna get y'." Remy said as Pete shot him a glare.

"Momma's boy." Pete commented as he took out his handkerchief and wiped the poop off.

"So I hear y' been pissin' off de petite." Remy said as Pete shook out the handkerchief in disgust. A smile appeared on his face when Remy mentioned Kitty.

"That girl is fun. Of course, there is comrade nutty that is in the way." Pete responded. From when Kitty first opened the door and he saw her, he saw an innocent face and expected her to just blush at his advances. Most girls did. She on the other hand had a bit of a temper and found it to be challenging.

"She's nine years younger den y'." Remy rolled his eyes at Pete, not hearing the door open to the back.

"So, your two years younger than me and dating a younger girl. And all you are telling me is she is legal." Pete shot back. "Bet you just playing with her too." He said. Neither one of them knowing Rogue was hiding behind part of the mansion listening to the conversation.

Remy smirked and shook his head. "Stolen lots of girls' hearts and never really thought about it. Of course, bein' a thief, stolen lots of things from people. But never had a someone steal from me till I met her." Remy said seriously before he chuckled. "Here I be de thief and dat girl stole my heart." Rogue smiled and had a tear roll down her face and wiped it away before she stepped out.

"We gave the information ta Miss. Munroe and Mr. Summers. They are gonna start plannin'." Rogue told Remy and took his hand. He brought her close to him and kissed her cheek. Pete made a gagging noise. "How do ya know this asshole?" She muttered to him.

"Y' really wanna know?" Remy looked down at her and she nodded.

Flashback

Pete and Remy were sitting in the cafeteria of the prison at a table next to a man with long black hair and tanned skin. Like everyone else, they were wearing orange jumpsuits. "So y' in, John?" Remy asked the man next to him.

"If it gets us out of here." John Grey Crow replied and tugged at the inhibitor collar around his neck.

"Pete." Remy nodded across the table to the black haired man.

"This better work or I will bloody kill you both." Pete muttered as he got up from the table and walked over to another where five big built men were sitting.

"Hey look, the little bitch is coming." One prisoner said with a laugh as Pete stood before him.

"Where do ya want it?" Another one with no hair grinned at Pete.

"You've pissed me off for the last time and now you must be punished." Pete told him before punching him in the face. The men at the table all got up and other prisoners around started gathering around to either watch or join in on the fight. Remy and John went to help Pete and were soon pulled back from the security guards.

"Break it up!" The one guard yelled as they separated all the prisoners. "Just for this, there will be no meal for you nine. Bring them back to their cells." The guard looked at those who had been fighting.

"That went bloody well." Pete growled as he and Remy got shoved into their cells. He had a black eye and felt his ribs hurting. "You better have gotten it."

"Relax mon ami. Easier den stealin' candy." Remy grinned as he held up the keys. Later that night they would wait till it was dark to break out. Until then, they acted like nothing had happened so it would tip off the guards.

"They're gone." Pete whispered over to Remy who took the keys out and unlocked his inhibitor collar, then tossed it over to Pete. Sparks flew off of Remy's hands.

"Feels much better." He smirked as the collar dropped off of Pete's neck. "Now we gotta get John."

"Scalphunter? I say we ditch him. The guy doesn't seem right in the head." Pete commented as he ran his fingers across the bars, slicing through them with the hot knives.

"Like y'r normal. He ain't dat bad of a guy. Rather been stuck with him den y'. At least he's not an asshole." Remy said as he pulled apart of the bars.

"Fine, go get your bloody friend. I got a score to settle." Pete muttered as they got out of the cell.

"Don't forget to take out de guards." Remy warned him before the other man started running down the hallway. He sighed and went to find John's cell. Other prisoners who were awake started making noise.

"Hey, get us out!" Some of them shouted. Remy ignored them and went down till he found John's cell. He didn't have time to get any of the others out and didn't plan on it. Most of the mutants in the prison had been murders that attacked people. There were a few that didn't belong in there. He didn't know if John did or not, but he had become friends with the older man and promised to get him out.

"Didn't think you would be able to do it." John commented as Remy tossed him the key and put his hands on the bars to melt them.

"Told y' I be one de best thief in de world." Remy said with a cocky grin on his face.

"Whatever, LeBeau." John rolled his eyes and tossed the collar on his bed and escaped from his cell. "Owe you one, Gambit. Ever need anything, just call." Scalphunter told him before he took off.

End of Flashback

"Monsieur Wisdom forgot to take out de guards because he was busy torturin' Bubba and we had to take dem out." Remy finished for Rogue.

"He deserved what he got." Pete muttered. "After, we laid low for a couple of months. So happy to get rid of this little snot."

"I was happier not to hear a 'bloody' every few words." Remy shot back.

"Hey, Mr. Summers wants. . ." Kitty came out to tell Remy and Rogue when she noticed Pete, who saluted her. She made a few steps away from him. "Anyways, he wants us to meet in the War Room in thirty minutes."

"Please tell me he's leaving soon?" Kitty glared at Pete.

"You know you liked it." Pete smirked at her. Kitty balled her hands into fists and marched up to him and pointed a finger in his face.

"I don't know why you keep picking on me, but I swear if you don't stop Piotr is going to squish you. I hope he does, because then I will laugh at you." Kitty yelled at him.

"You sure liked to scream at me a lot. I'm sure I could get you to scream a few _other _ways." Pete said down to her, causing her to turn red_. _

"I hate you." She glared at him and turned to walk into the house, but not before she felt his hand on her ass one last time. She turned around and smacked him. "Keep your hands to yourself!" She yelled.

"Keep doin' that and she will kick your ass." Rogue warned him. "I ain't kiddin'. One time she beat up Bobby in the Danger Room because he teased her about her uniform being too tight."

"Chere, I could have beaten up Bobby when I was five." Remy told her.

"Let's go, swamp rat." She pulled him into the mansion. Remy tossed his cigarette out at Pete's feet and caused it to explode.

"Wanker." Pete growled as he stepped back from the small explosion. After a few minutes he tossed his cigarette out and went into the mansion, only to find no one. 'Must be in this War Room place.' He thought to himself as he explored more of the mansion. He explored the upper level and found it mostly completely empty. He found the girl's hallway and ended up finding Kitty and Lorna's room. He wasn't planning on staying at the mansion that long so he took a souvenir to remember Kitty by.

Soon he made his way back to the recreational room after he got bored with the upstairs. He heard voices in the other room and figured that the others were done with their meeting.

Pete leaned against the wall and lit up a new cigarette. He didn't understand all the hero stuff or why they even bothered with any of it. It seemed like a waste of time. People hated mutants and mutants hated regular people. It was a never ending war that was useless getting involved in. He knew it, he knew Gambit knew it, but it seemed these mutants didn't understand it. "Put that out." He heard a childlike voice say that was almost robotic. He looked around and found no one in the room he walked up to the couch and found Kitty's stuff purple dragon, Lockhead, sitting on the couch.

"Must have a chip in it." He mused to himself before it spoke again.

"I see you there." The stuff animal spoke again.

"What the fuckin' hell." He cursed and picked the dragon up and felt around to find it only made of cloth and cotton.

"I am going to hide all your cigarettes and burn all your clothes." The stuff animal said. Pete threw the purple dragon on the couch and reached behind him and pulled out a gun he always carried with him.

"Like bloody hell you will." He said before shooting the dragon's head off. Shortly after the others heard the shot and ran into the room. Kitty screamed as she saw her decapitated stuff animal.

"Oh my god, he shot Lockhead!" She cried and picked up the pieces of the present she got from Piotr.

"I was defending myself from that bleeding thing. It threatened me!" Pete defended himself and pointed at the stuff animal.

"And you guys say I am crazy." Bobby muttered to Jubilee who went over to consult a crying Kitty. Piotr stood over Pete and glared down at him with his arms folded over his chest. Rogue could see the vein in his head ready to burst.

"THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!" Kitty screamed at Remy and kicked him in the knee. "You invited him here!"

Remy backed away from the fiery eyed brown girl. "Now, petite, I'm sure we can replace it." He told her with his hands up. The last time he had seen a woman this mad was his Tante Mattie when his cousin Lapin and him hotwired his brother's car when they were thirteen.

"That guy has done nothing but harass me! He's pinched, slapped, groped, and coped a feel every chance he gets! I won't be able to sit down for a week! And now he did this!" She screamed and pointed to the mess on the couch.

"It just means he likes y'. He ain't dat bad, he's worse when he's drunk." Remy told her and saw it didn't help the situation.

"Actually, I had a drink or two on the flight here." Pete piped up and got a glare from Remy. Here he was trying to defend his friend and he wouldn't shut up.

"It's not even two and y' drunk already? Thought y' didn't start till after six." Remy stated and Pete shrugged.

"Hey, when a beautiful lady asks you if you want a drink, it is rude to say no." The black haired man smiled. "She also dropped her name badge and got to see down her blouse when she bent over." He sighed. The girls in the room rolled their eyes. Typical male.

"If I see him again, I will take out his brain through his ass. Do you understand me." Kitty warned before turning back to the fallen pieces of her stuff animal that Piotr had picked up. Pete yawned at the threat and left the room and headed down the hall for the kitchen. It wasn't the first threat a woman had made on his life.

"I will get you a new one." He said before hugging her. He wanted nothing more than to tear Wisdom in half even though the X-Men were against starting violence. He was willing to make an exception.

"Fine, I get rid of him." Remy sighed before following his friend down the hall to the kitchen. 'Dey complainin' too much, could have been worse. At least he didn't shoot no one or break out in hysterics about de world endin'.' He thought to himself as he found Pete sitting at a stool. "Y' pissed her off good." He said to the black haired man before going into the fridge and grabbing the last beer and a water. He handed the beer to Wisdom and sat down across to him.

"She'll get over it." Pete shrugged and uncapped the beer and taking a sip.

"Non, from what my chere told me, she can hold a grudge worse den I can." Remy stated. Pete didn't look fazed.

"Yeah right. If you held a grudge, that bleeding mountain man would have been gone by now." Pete said before taking another sip of the beer. "Besides, you never got me back for cutting your hair when you were passed out." He grinned. He remembered the two of them had gotten so drunk they passed out. During that time, Pete had obtained a pair of scissor and cut off Gambit's pony tail. He considered it pay back for daring him to ask the psychopathic woman out.

"Dat's where y' wrong, mon ami. I did get y' back." Remy smiled at Pete, who looked at him confused. "Dat be first sin, nobody cuts my hair and gets away with it." He stated and they heard footsteps and the refrigerator door open.

"What the bloody hell are you talking about?" Pete asked before he heard a SNIKT.

"Where is my beer?" Logan growled and turned around to see a stunned Pete Wisdom holding his last beer. Wisdom looked down at the beer and then back at Logan and gulped.

"Y' might wanna run, mon ami. Dose claws hurt worse den dey look, trust me. And de Wolverine looks pretty pissed off." Remy grinned at his friend who dropped the beer and ran for it with Logan on his tail.

"That wasn't very nice." Rogue told him from the door and shook her head. Remy shrugged.

"Either dat or Kitty kill him." He told her and kissed her on the cheek as she sat down next to him.

"How do ya put up with him? Ah only seen the guy a few times and Ah wanna send him into a wall and break every bone in his body. He's a asshole." Rogue told him causing Remy to chuckle.

"De best way to study a person is when dey let dere defenses down. Make a person mad enough, dey show dere true colors. In Pete's case, he makes everyone hate him." Remy replied to her.

"Yeah, Ah guess. By the way, ya aren't allowed to invite anymore friends over. At least none like him. Kitty is still ticked off." Rogue told him and ran her fingers through Remy's hair. "Ah've been thinkin', ya could use a haircut." She said with a smile.

"Non, nobody touchin' my hair." Remy backed away from her.

"Aw, come on, sugah. Just a little snip." She pouted to him and he turned away from her. He got up from the stool and walked out the door covering his ears.

"Not doin' it, chere!" He yelled before leaving. Rogue chuckled to herself. It was fun to tease her Swamp Rat.

**An Hour Later**

"Where are they?" Cyclops turned to Storm who was waiting patiently next to him and Psylocke. They had told the younger students to be ready in thirty minutes and it was going on forty. So far the only other people ready to go were Wolverine, Gambit, Cannonball, Iceman, Chamber, and Colossus.

"Do you want me to get them?" Psylocke asked Cyclops as Rogue, Jubilee, Polaris, and Shadowcat finally emerged from the locker room in their uniforms.

"Sorry, we ran into a problem." Rogue apologized to Cyclops and avoided his stare. She looked over at Jubilee who was looking down.

"This had better not be a habit. We cannot afford to waste time while you waste time in the locker room." Cyclops told the girls, getting a glare from Jubilee.

"Fine, you want to know why we are late?" Jubilee asked him and put a hand on her hip. "I had to get a new uniform because I got my period. I got cramps and if you want to continue pissing me off-" She growled at him before Storm stopped her.

"We understand, child. There is no need to continue." Storm responded to the younger girl who folded her arms and glared at Cyclops.

"Men don't understand what we go through! Do you?" Jubilee glared at the men.

"That's enough." Cyclops stopped her before she went off on a rampage. "When we get to the Weapon X facility in northern Quebec, we will be setting up two teams lead by Storm and myself. Storm's team will go around back." A projection screen shot up showing the building's layout. "Their objective is to destroy the files within the facility and stop anyone that comes in their way. While my team will take out anyone outside and create a distraction. We will then proceed inside and set free any mutants found in prisons." Cyclops explained to everyone.

"My team will consist of Rogue, Iceman, Colossus, Polaris, Shadowcat, and Jubilee." Storm announced and heard a few groans from the group.

"Can we have a redo? I like y'r team better." Gambit commented and got a disapproving look from Storm. He sighed knowing she wouldn't change her mind. 'Stubborn when she was little and still is today. Where did I go wrong?' He thought to himself.

"Hey what about that Deadpool guy?" Cannonball asked the others.

"Someone call me?" They heard the mercenary say before he walked in sporting a new uniform he found.

"AH MY EYES!" Polaris screamed and turned away while many of the others did the same.

"What? I decided if I am going to be part of this team I needed a uniform likes yours. Except this one kind of makes my butt look big." Deadpool turned around wearing one of Jean Grey's first uniforms. It had short sleeves with a V neck and a short black skirt. He was about to say something when a optic blast nearly hit him.

"Get out of Jean's uniform NOW!" Cyclops said slowly and dangerous with his hand on his visor.

"You guys are no fun, and here I am helping you for free, something I usually don't do and this I how I am treated. Heck, he got a uniform and hair gel." Deadpool pointed at Wolverine. "Then again, they don't have uniforms either." He looked over at Gambit, Chamber, Polaris, and Cannonball before leaving.

Wolverine growled and stared at Cyclops. "Why the hell is he comin' along? We don't need him. I ain't gonna put up with his mouth durin' this mission." He warned Cyclops.

"I'm sorry. It ended up between a coin toss between us and I lost." Cyclops told Wolverine and slammed his fist into the table.

"Chere, can we just skip dis?" Gambit whispered to Rogue who looked sympathetic to him.

"It'll only be one mission, sugah. After this, hopefully that guy will find someone else to disturb." Rogue rubbed Gambit's hand, but he still pouted. He didn't want to be on the same team as Cyclops, Wolverine, or Deadpool.

"Mr. McCoy and Mr. Worthington have agreed to stay behind and watch over the school until we get back. Is there any other questions before we leave?" Cyclops asked the group and Jubilee raised her hand. "That has to do with the mission and not personal problems." He added and Jubilee lowered her hand. "Let's move out then." He ordered to the group.

The team left for the jet and Cyclops waited for Deadpool to finish changing and make sure he placed Jean's uniform carefully back where he found it. While on the way to the jet, Hank stopped Gambit.

"Mr. LeBeau, may I please see you for a moment." Hank asked the younger man, who grumbled. He knew the doctor needed to check his arm. He looked over at Rogue and she nodded for him to go.

"Ah'll save ya a seat." She told him and kissed his cheek before Remy followed the doctor off to the side.

"Now can I see your arm?" He asked the younger man. Remy sighed and pulled off his beaten up duster that still had a few holes in it from his fight with Deadpool and Sabertooth. He rolled up his sleeve and showed McCoy the bandage.

"It be fine." Remy insisted as Hank began unraveling the gauze.

"I will be the judge of that, my young friend. I must warn you to be very careful, I would not suggest fighting. . . oh my." Hank looked down at the wound to find it completely healed with no scar. Remy starred down in shock as well, but quickly recovered his expression to make it seem like it was nothing.

"Told y' I be fine." Remy told Hank and pulled his sleeve down and put his duster back on. "Y' worry too much. Dis Cajun been through worse." He gave a cocky smile, but Hank didn't seem convinced.

"Remy, do you have a healing factor of any kind?" Hank asked before Cyclops announced over the intercom they were leaving.

"Sorry, catch y' later." Remy waved to the stunned doctor.

**Weapon X**

"How is the project progressing?" Malcolm Colcord asked Dr. Abraham Cornelius who sat in front of a computer in front of a large tank. Inside green water surrounded a creature that slept suspended in the liquid. The creature stood roughly eight feet tall and it's skin had been tainted to a light green. Five long talons hung from each finger on its massive hands. Horns ran down from its forehead down the back and extended to its tail.

"Predator X is ninety percent ready at the moment. By tomorrow, it should be operational and will be ready to hunt down Wolverine." Cornelius told the Director.

"Why has this been progressing so slow? I have already gotten reports that Deadpool and Gambit have failed in capturing Wolverine and I am sure he has grown suspicious of our activity. This project had better work or consider yourself terminated." He told the older man before leaving.

Dr. Robert Windsor shut the door to his office and hung up his coat. He had set up a private lab in Seattle to keep his secret projects out of the eyes of Weapon X. He knew they planned on capturing more mutants to try to create another perfect mutant like Weapon XI, but knew it would fail. No mutant was meant to have that much power at once and if it did, there was little chance it could control all of them.

He sat down at his desk and pulled up a new screen on the computer. He began typing away for information in Weapon X's data bank on mutants. The facility had information on over two thousand mutants from where they lived, grew up, what their powers were, and anything that would be useful in capturing them. Most of them had escaped or were dead unfortunately.

He stopped when he got down to the file he had been looking for labeled: Mutant 266RL-Gambit. He clicked the file and began reading on the mutant. "Interesting." His hand went to his chin as he gazed over the history. He already knew of the mutant's powers, but not of its history. He leaned back in his chair and sent it and a few other mutant files to his disc to be saved.

"This could be useful later." He said to himself as he gazed over the information one last time. 'I am sure he'd be interested in learning of his heritage. Perhaps I could use this to my advantage.'

**End of Chapter 24**

Character Info: Peter Wisdom. For a short while, he did have an eye patch over his eye, it served no purpose. For those of you who don't know, Lockhead was a dragon (not a stuff animal dragon, but real) type creature that was around Kitty a lot. Lockhead hated Pete and Pete claimed that Lockhead would talk to him and threaten him when it talked to no one else. Also, Pete was Kitty's boyfriend in the comics for a while, they even had a solo together: Pryde and Wisdom. He was a spy for a company named Black Air. His fingers could turned into hot knives and throw them.

Sneak Peak: Weapon X

"Okay, let's go." Cyclops instructed and turned around to find only Chamber, Cannonball, and Psylocke. "Where are the other three?" He grounded his teeth.

"Well, Gambit said he didn't want to take orders from you and left. Wolverine said you talked too much and he could be slicing away ten minutes ago. Deadpool ran off after him and I am relieved for that." Psylocke explained to Cyclops.

___

"Please, don't kill me." The guard plead as Deadpool held the sword against his throat.

"Did you just wet yourself? Dude that is not cool. I wasn't really going to kill you, it's just for show." Deadpool said to the guard causing him to relax.

"Nah, I am just kidding, I'm going to kill you." Deadpool laughed before he sliced the man's throat.

____

"What the hell is that?" Rogue asked Storm as Predator X broke free of its confinement.

"This is why you don't flush gator's don't the toilet." Iceman commented to the ground as the giant lizard growled.


	25. Weapon X

I swear I did not plan for this chapter to come out during the movie! Speaking of which, the movie has made me the happiest little Gambit fangirl. After years of waiting has finally paid off to see him on the big screen. Sure there are some flaws to him that could be changed, but it could be worse!

Special Thanks to: **Wanda W, laenamoradadeROGUE, tfobmv18**, and **RogueNya**! Thanks so much for reviewing the last chapter and telling me what ya thought! You all get X-Men cookies! Sorry, but the Deadpool one is missing a head.

These are the ages of the characters: Jubilee/18 Chamber/19 Polaris/19 Iceman/21 Rogue/20 Gambit/25 Wolverine ??? Storm/31 Cyclops/32 Psylocke/28 Angel/28 Shadowcat/18 Colossus/22 Cannonball/21 Beast/35

Disclaimer: I write for my own amusement, not for money. All the characters in the story do not belong to me.

* * *

"So, are you going to Jerry's party on Saturday?" A guard asked the one next to him as they stood outside a tall metal building. It was unusual for there to be any activity around the compound that required any notice. Most of the time the guards stood around for eight hours before switching or going home. None of them had any encounters with anyone trying to break into the facility.

"That loser? Hell no." The second guard said and leaned against the wall. He looked over at his friend and yawned. "I am thinking of switching jobs. I mean the pay here is great and all, but it is useless."

"Ya got that right." Rogue said from above and lifted both guards by the back of their jackets. Iceman came out from behind a metal waste can he had been hiding behind and froze the guards in a ice block.

"I'm too cool." Iceman folded his arms over his chest and looked over at his teammates.

"You are too much of a freak." Jubilee sang as she walked passed him and over to Rogue. The others came out of hiding and waited for Shadowcat to go through the wall and make sure the coast was clear.

"If this mission goes good, does that mean we get less Danger Room time?" Iceman asked Storm, who was ignoring him. Since they had left the jet and separated from the other team, he and some of the others had been asking pointless questions that had nothing to do with the mission.

"We're good." Shadowcat reappeared and gave the thumbs up. She started phasing her teammates through the wall.

"If this mission goes good, it means we need to train more to make sure it goes great next time." Storm replied before taking Shadowcat's hand and phasing through the wall.

Iceman grumbled about how they were overworked already. "Did ya expect her ta say anythin' else?" Rogue asked him before Shadowcat returned for them.

"Well I though it couldn't hurt." Iceman shrugged before they entered the building.

The group walked down the hallway, engaging against guards they found. "Okay, this isn't going to get us anywhere." Polaris sighed as they continued walking trying to find the room. A guard began shooting at them and she used her powers to lift the gun above his head. "Colossus, beat the crap out of him until he tells us where the control room is."

"That's a little more affective." Rogue commented as the metal armored mutant approached the guard who was backing away from him. Colossus reached down and grabbed the man by his shoulders and banged him against the wall.

"Where is the control room?" Colossus asked calmly. The others came on either side of him to show that there would be no escape.

"I don't know what you're talking about." The guard played stupid.

"Can I hit him?" Shadowcat asked Storm.

"We do not promote violence, unless it is necessary. Unfortunately for our friend he does not wish to share the information we need. In this case, go ahead." Storm told her and watched the man's face turn pale.

"It's down the hall, second room to the right!" The guard shrieked and Colossus let him go.

"Thanks!" Jubilee waved to the guard before following the others. The group made it down the hallway and broke into the control room.

"Hey, you're not allowed-" A man said as he got up from his chair in front of a bunch of monitors and stopped when Rogue punched him.

Storm immediately went over to the monitors as Piotr and Iceman guarded the door. "There is one prisoner in here it shows." Storm announced and turned to her team. "Iceman and Polaris, I'm going to send you two to find the prisoner and help them escape. Shadowcat, you will destroy all the computers in here. Rogue, Colossus, and Jubilee will keep watch here. I will try to communicate with Cyclops and find out where his team is located."Storm ordered.

**Outside**

Cyclops' group stood by the trees watching guards pace back and forth in front of the entrance. "Okay team, we're going to find the. . . can you put those away." Cyclops glared at Gambit through his visor as the younger mutant shuffled a deck of cards in his hands.

"I'm listenin', not my fault you can't multi-task, mon ami." Gambit smirked and shuffled the deck just to tick Cyclops off for good measures. He didn't want to be on this team and he was going to let Cyclops know it.

"I can cut his hand off." Deadpool suggested, causing Gambit to step closer to Psylocke and Chamber.

"No." Cyclops glared at the mercenary and turned back to the base and pointed at it. "We're going to take out the guards stationed at the sides and in the front. Cannonball will go up high and report what he sees. Psylocke and I will go around the other side and make sure the coast is clear. Chamber and Gambit will make sure any security cameras are cut. Wolverine and Deadpool will handle any guards that come our way." Cyclops announced to them and turned back around. "Any questions." He frowned.

Psylocke stood with her arms folded over her purple uniform and looked over at Chamber who shrugged. They were the only ones left besides Cannonball. _I'm sure it would have been a good plan. _Chamber told him with a shrug.

"Yeah, Ah'm sure we could use it next time Mr. Sum-Cyclops." Cannonball told him after correcting himself. It was hard to remember when to go by codenames and not.

"Where are they?" Cyclops teeth grounded together. They were supposed to be a team and work as one. Not go running off whenever they felt like it. 'They are going to pay later for this.' He made a mental note.

"Well Gambit said he didn't want to take orders from you and left. Wolverine said you talked too much and he could have been inside by now. Deadpool said he wanted to kill something and ran off and frankly, I am relieved." Psylocke reported to Cyclops who sighed.

"Great. Well, let's just blast our way in and anyone in it." Cyclops told his team.

* * *

Wolverine sliced off the barrel of the gun pointed at him and stabbed the guard with his other set of claws. He raced through the hallway catching the scent of a few people in the next room. He crept closely and listened in to what they were saying.

"What do you mean it is only ninety-five percent complete? I don't care if the damn thing falls apart, get it moving and hunt down Weapon X now!" Colcord said from inside the meeting room to Dr. Cornelius and some of the other scientists.

Wolverine let out a low growl and kicked the door open, startling the small group. "You said we were secured!" One of the scientist yelled and made a run for the back door. Colcord and two guards each took out a gun and began shooting at Wolverine to no end. The mutant took each shot as if it was nothing. He ran at the guards and cut down each one at a time before turning to find Colcord behind Dr. Cornelius.

"We finally get to meet face to face, Weapon X." Dr. Cornelius smiled at Wolverine and snarled at him when Colcord shot him in the head.

"That ain't my name, bub and ya ain't gonna have time ta learn it after I'm done with ya." Wolverine menacingly stalked the two men who began moving away from him slowly.

"I remember attending the procedure done on you. Stryker was quite proud and confident that it would work on you. He was right, the adamantium bonded to your bones quite nicely. If only he had been able to finish what he wanted with you before you went berserk." Dr. Cornelius explained and Colcord reloaded his gun.

"I was one of the many victims." The scared man snarled and aimed his gun at Wolverine's head. "We were order to make sure you didn't escape. You killed the other guards and slashed my face." Colcord glared at Wolverine.

"Looks good on ya. I'll be adding a matching set." Wolverine raised his claws.

"Wait, we can tell you anything you want to know. About who you were and where you grew up. We know all about you." Dr. Cornelius tried to bribe the mutant.

"Not interested in your lies. Ya the ones that have been sendin' people ta capture or kill me. I'm getting' sick of it and lookin' at ya." Wolverine snarled before lunging at Dr. Cornelius and slashed him across the middle as Colcord shot him in the head again.

"You are nothing but an animal. You are just like your brother, no matter how much you try to deny it." Colcord snarled and backed into the wall and continued to shoot.

Wolverine stopped for a moment. 'Brother?' He thought to himself. He had recovered a memory of him and another boy who called him his brother. A part of him wanted to know more, but the other knew this man wanted him dead more than anything. All he wanted to do was save himself which was something Wolverine was not going to allow.

"I ain't one, ya are the ones that are the animals. Ya are too scared ta fight me without puttin' someone else in front of ya or havin' ta use a weapon." Wolverine retracted his claws. "I'll even give ya a chance to fight me fairly so ya can get some kind of revenge ya think ya deserve."

Colcord dropped the gun to his side and eyes Wolverine as the mutant circled him. He reached to the inside of his pocket and felt a Swiss army knife. He went to punch Wolverine with one hand, landing on the mutant's chest. With his other hand, he unhinged the knife and stuck it in Wolverine's neck. Before he could even move, he heard Wolverine unsheathed his claws and gut him.

"I gave ya a chance ta show your honor, just shows ya don't have any." Wolverine snarled before the Director slid off his claws and down to the ground.

**Prisoner Area**

"This is it." Iceman said as they stood back and Polaris used her powers to rip off the door to the prison area. The two walked into the cell area and found it mostly empty with the exception of one cell occupied.

"Hey, we're getting you out of here." Iceman told the person who was sleeping on a mattress. He could see it was a woman with blondish white hair and skin looked deformed, almost as if it had been turned inside out. Her face was wrinkled and so was the skin on her arms. "Do you need some help?" He asked as Polaris opened the cell and woman shot up and stared at them.

"Have you come to get me? Are they ready to begin again?" The woman sat on the edge of the bed. Polaris looked at Iceman who didn't know what to say. They never thought they would have this reaction from a prisoner.

"We're here to rescue you from Weapon X." Polaris tried to explain to the woman, but she only glared at them.

"Why? I work here. I've worked here for twenty six years. They closed down my project and said that I could work on mutants with Weapon X." The woman hissed at them.

"Well, Weapon X is being shut down at the moment. So either move or be crushed, it's up to you." Iceman told the woman before he and Polaris left. They were not going to argue with the woman if she didn't want to leave. They left the door open if she wanted to follow.

"I got a weird vibe from her, but it almost seemed familiar." Iceman told Polaris as they left the area and went back to the control area where the other group was at.

"How so?" Polaris asked him as they walked down the metal hallway.

"I felt the same thing a few weeks ago when. . . never mind. It's probably nothing." Iceman shook his head and they walked down the corridor.

* * *

A guard had his gun pointed at Wolverine as the feral mutant went along knocking out the guards that got in his path after he exited the meeting room. The guard was about to pull the trigger when he felt a cold metal substance against his neck. "Now that's not nice shooting him when he's not looking." Deadpool said from behind him and then the man turned around and shot him in the chest.

"Stay where you are, freak!" The guard yelled and had the gun trained on him. Deadpool looked down at where he had been shot and shook his head.

"You know I was just being polite and figured you might have wanted to take Wolverine on face to face, but," Deadpool sliced the guards arm that was holding the gun. The man screamed in pain and clutched his heavily bleeding arm. "I'll just play with you." He held the other sword underneath the man's neck.

"Please, don't kill me." The guard plead to Deadpool, who tilted his head and looked down at the guard.

"Ew, did you just wet yourself? Dude that is not cool! I wasn't really going to kill you, it was just for show." Deadpool took the sword away from the man's neck. The guard sighed in relief and felt tears of joy come to his eyes.

"Nah, I was just kidding, I'm going to kill you." Deadpool laughed before he pulled out his gun and shot the guard in the head.

* * *

Polaris and Iceman caught up with the rest of the team that were waiting for them outside the control room. "What happened to the prisoner?" Storm asked them.

"She didn't want to be rescued." Iceman told her. He looked over and saw Jubilee blowing bubbles with her gum and tapping her foot which was starting to get on Colossus and Shadowcat nerves.

"There are more people in the main lab." Storm gathered the group around as she showed them the layout of the Weapon X facility they found in the other room. "This is where Cyclops team should be though they have split up from what he told me." Storm reported to them, catching Jubilee and Rogue's attention.

"What do ya mean they split up? Ah thought the two teams were supposed to stay tagether." Rogue asked Storm, feeling nervous about something happening to Gambit.

"Cyclops told me before they entered the building, Wolverine, Deadpool, and Gambit left the team and went in by themselves. He had been trying to contact them, but no one is answering." Storm told the young girl.

"Is Chamber alright?" Jubilee asked Storm as they began walking down the hallway.

"He said that everyone else was with him and fine. They've haven't encountered anything yet, mostly whoever had been in Wolverine and Deadpool's way." Storm said to Jubilee as they rounded the corner and were about to go through double doors to the main lab. Two guards standing outside the lab stood in front and then aimed their guns at them.

Polaris raised her hand and the guns floated out of their hands and into the air above them. She twisted them into a knot and then dropped them at the guard's feet. Colossus quickly got rid of the guards. Before the entered the lab area, Polaris placed a hand on Rogue's shoulder. "He'll be alright." She tried to reassure the other girl.

"Ah hope so. That boy likes lookin' for trouble." Rogue said. She knew that Gambit would be fine by himself and could handle anything thrown at him. but she heard this nagging little voice in the back of her mind saying it wouldn't be.

"Nice welcome party." Jubilee whispered to Shadowcat as ten more guards surrounded the group and the scientists down below heard the noise and began to scatter.

"Freeze mutants." One of the guards said to the team. Iceman began snickering as his body turned into ice form.

"Is this good enough for you?" Iceman asked and put his arms out. Storm rolled her eyes and shook her head. Cyclops team may have split up and not worked well as a group, but at least they took the mission more serious than her group.

Iceman blasted ice beams at three of the soldiers, while Jubilee sent fireworks at two others blinding them. Colossus ran at two other guards who started shooting at his metal form, only to have it bounce off. He swung his fist knocking them out.

"We are having a major problem, the mutants-" One of the guards began to call for back up when Rogue hit him into a wall. She picked up two other guards who were aiming at Jubilee and carried them into the air.

"That ain't bein' a gentleman. Ya don't hit a lady!" Rogue told them before throwing them into equipment in the lab.

"Activate it!' One of the scientist ordered to a lady in a white coat. She looked hesitantly at Predator X.

"It's not ready yet." She told the scientist who ended up shoving her out of the way and started typing a sequence into the computer. The lights in the room dimmed and the containment tube in the back lit up.

The creature inside the tube began to stir and it's bright white eyes opened. A soft growl was heard from inside and the scientist began backing away and into the X-men that surrounded them.

"Um, I don't like the looks of that." Shadowcat commented to the others.

* * *

Gambit kicked out the vent he had been climbing through and jumped down to the floor. He looked to both his sides and found no guards. 'Now, where would dey be hidin'?' He thought to himself as he began checking some of the offices.

"Gambit, Wolverine, come in!" He heard Cyclops shout from the communication badge he was given before the mission. He grabbed the small device that was in the shape of an X and turned the volume down low. The last thing he needed was the fearless leader yelling at him and alerting the guards.

He wandered down the hallway and finally found Colcord's office and opened it. No one was inside and he was figuring the man was being distracted by Storm's team or perhaps Wolverine was having another go at him. He shut the door behind him and went over to the cabinets and began pulling out any documents and destroying them.

Most of them were files that had been recovered from Stryker's days in Weapon X. After a little bit, he didn't bother to even read the files and just destroyed them. He quickly stopped however when the door knob began to turn. He found a spot behind the door and hid as the door opened.

"Sir, I wanted to. . .figures." He heard Robert Windsor and his eyes narrowed. He wouldn't tell Rogue or the others, but he had been having nightmares about what the man had done to him in his short care.

Gambit reached into his pocket and grabbed his bo staff and extended it. Windsor looked in shock as the staff was slammed into his head without warning. The older man fell to the ground with a small wound to his head. "Let's see how y' do when de mutant isn't tied down." He snarled and held the staff underneath the man's chin.

Windsor didn't look intimidated, he only stared up at Gambit as if he was observing him. "I don't know why I didn't notice this before, you really do look like her." He said.

"Don't know what kind of gibberish y' talkin', homme, but it's not gonna be for long." Gambit muttered as his eyes glowed red and the staff began to charge and heat up underneath his fingertips.

"I know about the group you joined, they don't kill." Windsor stared back at Gambit, trying to ignore the pain of the burning metal near him.

"Never officially joined dem, so dose rules don't apply to me." Gambit smirked down at the older man as he was now looking a bit scared.

"Gambit, Wolverine, come in! We need you down in the main lab. We have run into a problem!" He heard Storm's voice say softly from the badge. He looked down at the badge and then at Windsor trying to decide what to do. He knew he had to help them, especially since Rogue was with Storm's team, but at the same time he didn't want to let the man get away.

"What's it going to be, boy." Windsor began antagonizing him. Gambit narrowed his eyes and was about to smack the man with his staff again when he heard more yelling from the badge.

"Y' better hope we don't cross paths again, mon brave. De next time y' won't be walkin' away." Gambit snarled at him before taking off down the hall to find the main lab.

* * *

"What is that thing?" Rogue asked Storm as Predator X smashed his massive green clawed hand through the glass and detaching the wires on its body. The giant beast let out a roar when it finally broke free and narrowed its eyes at the mutants before it.

"I have no idea, child." Storm whispered and took a step back.

"This is why you don't flush gators down the toilet!" Iceman stated and nudged Rogue. "That or maybe he's a friend of Gambit's, I'm sure there are a bunch them from where he's at." He said trying to lighten the mood. Rogue only glared at him.

"This is not the time for jokes." Storm told Iceman and took off for the sky. The creature took swipes at any one that came near it.

Rogue flew at the creature and punched it, only to have it not seem affected. The creature grabbed her, scrapping her arm with its long claws and threw her away from it. Rogue hit a table and fell over on the other side of it. She looked down and saw her wound already beginning to close and got up.

"Hey, Godzilla, over here!" Jubilee yelled and sent a stream of fireworks at Predator X who howled in rage from being temporary blind. It made its way over to Jubilee and Storm sent a lightning bolt at the creature, but it didn't seem to have any affect.

"Crap, it's got a healing factor!" ShadowCat yelled to the others as she saw a small cut on the creature heal. Colossus ran at the creature and tried to get it away from the girls. It's claws tried to scratch the mutant, but had not affect due to the metal armor. It glared at Colossus as it started pushing the big mutant backwards.

"Stand back!" He heard Cyclops yell before letting the creature go and a optic blast hit Predator X. The creature cried out in pain and hit the containment tube it had been born in. Glass shattered around it and stuck into the creature's skin.

Predator X got up and it's wounds began to heal. It snarled at the group right before Psylocke jumped on its shoulders and drove her blade through its skull. She quickly got off the creature before Chamber let out a psionic blast by lowering his scarf.

"It's not working." Storm told Cyclops. "it has a healing factor and it seems more sped up than Wolverines."

"Come on, let's see how it likes heights." Rogue told Cannonball and the two flew at Predator X. it took a swing at them with its horned tail, but missed. Rogue grabbed the beast by its shoulders and Cannonball grabbed the legs. They flew into the air and dropped it hard into another containment tube, breaking it.

"Did that work?" Cannonball asked Rogue, who floated next to him. they looked down as a huge shard of glass impaled Predator X. the creature howled in pain before standing up and taking the glass out.

"Now he is pissin' me off. There's gotta be some weakness." Rogue growled before she dodged out of the way when Predator X jumped at them. It hit Cannonball and sent him to the ground head first.

"Sam!" Polaris shouted and ran to the blond side, followed by Cyclops.

"We got to get him out of here." Cyclops said and looked around. They needed two people to bring Cannonball back to the jet, but at the moment couldn't afford to lose anyone.

Predator X snarled as Iceman, Jubilee, and Chamber kept shooting their powers at it and Psylocke would stab it every chance she got. Rogue ripped a metal desk from out of the ground and threw it at the creature.

"Hey princess, over here!" Deadpool shouted and shot the creature with his guns and kept shooting as it made its way over to him. The creature healed within seconds of being shot and Deadpool lowered his weapons. "Aw, you're not really a bad lizard are you, you just got anger issues. I wonder whose DNA they put into you." Deadpool said as the creature stood face to face with him.

"Whose an ugly little lizard, you are." Deadpool rubbed its chin and it bit his right arm off. Deadpool narrowed his eyes from behind his mask. "Hey! I need that!" The mercenary yelled as the creature hit him with its tail. It swallowed Deadpools arm and turned its attention back to the X-Men.

Rogue landed near Jubilee and Shadowcat. "Great, now what?" Rogue muttered as the creature stalked its way over.

"Y' tellin' me after all de things y' gone against, y' can't handle a little lizard." Gambit asked from behind them. Rogue turned and hugged her boyfriend briefly.

"If ya think ya can do better, let's see it." Rogue told him. Gambit smirked and flicked his pack of cards from one hand to the other.

"And what do I get if I beat it?" Gambit asked her. Jubilee and Shadowcat rolled their eyes.

"Just throw the cards, Gumbo! The stupid thing won't die." Jubilee said and stood back as Predator X took a swing at them. The four mutants dodged out of the way.

Gambit took three cards in his hand and charged them before throwing them at Predator X. the cards exploded on impact and the creature howled in pain before once again repairing the damage done. "Not so easy, is it?" Shadowcat muttered to Gambit.

"Three cards, little damage. Let's see how he does with a game of fifty-two card pick up." Gambit shuffled the cards into one hand and began to charge it. He waited until the creature to get near to throw the cards, but didn't get a chance. Wolverine pounced on the creature from behind and dug his claws into its skull. "No one invited y'."

"Better than standin' around and lookin' pretty. Leave this guy for me, it takes a real man to beat him." Wolverine told Gambit, who glared at him.

"Can't they get along for two minutes?" Polaris asked Rogue after she was done checking on Cannonball.

"Ah'll work on it when we get home." Rogue winked at Polaris and watched as Wolverine was thrown off the creature and Gambit threw the cards at it. the deck of cards had more affect this time and creature a giant hole in Predator X, but it's healing capabilities took care of any injury.

Wolverine growled and retracted his claws. He had an idea that could work or it could blow up in his face. "Hey!" He got in front of the creature and started antagonizing it. he dodged as it took swings at him with its claws.

"Logan, we're going to have Bobby freeze it!" Shadowcat yelled as Iceman stood next to her. Wolverine turned and looked at them before Predator X grabbed him in its arms. It's hot smelly breath blew into his face as he looked at its teeth and the drools hanging off of them.

"Ever brush those." Wolverine asked before the creature ate him.

"Holy shit." Jubilee's mouth hung up and Shadowcat's eyes went wide.

"Wolvie? That thing ate Wolvie!" Shadowcat cried.

"Dat creature is gonna die of heart burn." Gambit said to himself, only be to elbowed by Rogue.

"Hey, Logan! If you see my arm in there, can you hold onto it when he poops you out!" Deadpool yelled at the creature.

Predator X snarled and looked over at the young mutants, who were upset. It took five steps before it stopped. Three metal claws appeared through its stomach and cut upward. The creature howled one last time before it fell dead, finally.

"Wolvie!" Shadowcat and Jubilee ran to Wolverine's side and hugged him. "Don't try that again!" Jubilee told him and pointed a finger at him. "Also, maybe take a shower before we get back on the jet, you kinda smell."

"Told y' he digests bad." Gambit whispered to Rogue.

"Why didn't we try that before?" Iceman asked the others and looked down at the dead experiment. "It was so easy to kill, we were just doing it the wrong way. We had to kill it from the inside."

_Next time there is an unstoppable creature, we'll have you try it._ Chamber told him.

"We need to get Cannonball back. Colossus would you please carry him. he has a small cut on his head and hasn't woken up yet." Cyclops ordered as the group gathered around them.

"Is this it? No more Weapon X?" Rogue asked the two leaders.

"I took out a bunch of scientists and the director of this. Hopefully there is none left." Wolverine told the ground as he continued to wipe away the slim from Predator X off.

"There's still that lady in the cell area that said she worked here, but I think she was right in the head." Polaris told Cyclops. She hoped he was not going to send them back down there to drag the woman out. Not only was her appearance disturbing, but so was her personality. 'Maybe that's from living here.' She thought to herself.

"All the equipment has been destroyed, so there is no reason to stay. The guards are either taken out or ran off. The prisoner can leave when she wants to, we cannot force her to come." Cyclops told the group before they started walking out of the buildings.

"Now we can finally relax. All these stupid bad guys are gone." Jubilee sighed and leaned her head on Chamber's shoulder as they walked.

"I am afraid not, luv. We still need to find the Professor." Psylocke told the young girl.

"Damnit!" Jubilee cursed.

Deadpool stayed behind and dug through Predator X looking for his arm. "There you are. Now just twist and turn there." He said as he reattached his arm and flex his hand when it was on.

"Guys?" He looked around and found no one in the room except himself. "Nice team you guys are, leaving a teammate to die in the cold. I'm sure they do this often." He muttered and picked up his swords and twirled it around.

"Now what am I going to do?" Deadpool folded his arms over his felt his phone vibrate. He opened it to see the text message sent to him. "Sweet! I am out of here. See you readers later!"

**End of Chapter 25**

Sorry for the chapter, I hate writing fight scenes and they hate me.

Sneak Peak: **Assassins and Thieves**

"Gambit, a blond woman is here to see you. She didn't tell me her name, but said you would know her. She's in the dining room waiting." Angel told Gambit who looked over at Rogue.

"Anythin' else y' can tell me about her?" He asked the once feathery mutant.

"She seemed very anxious to see you. She said it's been years." Angel added.

Remy opened the door and stared in shock at the woman standing with her arms cross and a pleasant smile on her face. "Mon dieu." He whispered as a small smile crept on his face.

"Who is that?" Jubilee asked Rogue quietly as Remy went to greet his guest.

"I don't know." Rogue whispered as Remy hugged the blond woman.


	26. Thieves and Assassins

I can't believe how long this chapter ended up being, even with a missing scene that has to appear next chapter; it's still 6 pages longer than expected. I need to go ice my fingers, they hurt.

Special Thanks to: **DWatts1027, amyln, scarleteyes21, Wanda W, tfobmv18, laenamoradadeROGUE, Sunshine Samich, Kerrilea, Star-of-Chaos, RogueNya**, and **Sagebeth** thank you guys so much for taking the time to review and tell me your thoughts of the story so far! Everyone gets a decapitated Deadpool cookie!

This chapter is dedicated to my newborn nephew (Ethan) and to meine Tantie(RIP) both on May 7th.

Disclaimer: I own nothing except for what I buy and Marvel wouldn't accept the twenty dollars to buy some of their characters, so I'm only borrowing them. How I return them is a different story.

**Brotherhood**

The members of the Brotherhood sat around in the living room in front of the television. John, Wanda, and Pietro sat on the couch, while Toad and Avalanche sat in chairs next to them. Revanche stood behind the couch with her arms crossed over her chest, ignoring all the chatting going on. Blob sat by himself in a chair facing the doorway and right underneath a window. Pulse stood off to the side waiting for Mystique to make her entrance. She had called everyone to meet in the living room for an important matter and was running a minute late.

Wanda folded her arms across her chest as she was beginning to lose her patients. While the Brotherhood was better than living with the X-Men, they still tended to get on her nerves. She didn't care much for Mystique, but at least she wasn't a whiny teenager who picked fights with her. She had to admit, John was much better sight than some of the other men that were at the school as well. She would never admit this to him, but something she kept in mind.

Finally, Mystique decided to grace her group with her presence, ignoring the look Wanda gave her. "About time." Wanda muttered under her breath as blue skinned woman began to speak.

"We will be going on a mission tonight." She told them and then grabbed the remote to the television and turned it on. The volume was put on mute and it showed Graydon Creed in front of a podium speaking to a crowd of people. Every once in a while he would bang his hand on the podium and the crowd would applause.

"His name is Graydon Creed. He feels mutants are a threat to society, like many other idiots in the world." She said while looking down at the screen. Her eyes narrowed as he waved to the crowd and stepped down and was replaced by another speaker. "He is planning on setting up a rally called the Friends of Humanity to work on getting rid of mutants." She turned the television off and her focused went back to the Brotherhood.

"So, you want us to kill him?" Pietro asked her as he leaned back and cracked his back. Wanda gave him a disgusted look, but didn't say anything.

"No!" Mystique snapped at him, catching Pietro and a few of the others by surprise. They had never seen her so worked up over something. It had to have been important to get a reaction out of her. "We will be capturing him." She said coolly as she straightened up and acted as if she hadn't lost it.

"Why not kill the shit? Without him, then there is no Friends of Humanity. Unless we get to torture him." John mentioned.

"No, only those who are killed will be the ones that get in our way. I have the address of where he lives." She told them and took the folder that had been preplaced on the television and threw it down on the coffee table in front of the couch.

Wanda bent down and picked the folder up and flipped through the papers. The first was a picture of his house and the address written below. Others were of his work address, where he hung out, and other information that would be useful to them. "So, he's married? Do we get to off her?" Wanda asked as she stopped on the photos.

A cruel smile appeared on Mystique's face. "Like I said kill anyone that gets in our way of capturing him. I've had enough of his outburst against mutants and we needs to put an end to it. By the time we're done, he won't even want to think of mutants." She told them while not telling them the real reason of why they were capturing him. She wanted a reunion with her estranged son and knew how much he despised her. A part of the plan was to make sure that Creed didn't form the Friends of Humanity, but mostly it was for her own selfish reason.

**X-Mansion**

The X-Men finally arrived at the mansion around ten in the morning. Most of them had slept on the jet ride home, with the exception of Scott and Ororo. Some of the younger X-Men dragged themselves out of the jet when it landed. Logan carried an unconscious Sam to Hank's lab to be checked on. During the flight he had woke up, but went back to sleep shortly afterwards.

Rogue leaned against Remy as they followed the teens in front of them. Both had slept on the jet with Remy by the window seat and Rogue next to him. Rogue smiled as she remembered waking up to find Remy had enclosed his bare hand around hers. She loved the feel of finally being able to touch someone again, and not just anyone, someone she cared about. It made it special that he was the only one who she could touch.

They entered the elevator and waited for the doors to close. Rogue quickly placed her gloves over her hands out of force of habit and she didn't want to accidently bump anyone. She was sure the last thing Hank wanted was for another student to enter the Med. lab. "Ya goin' ta sleep when we get up there?" Rogue asked Jubilee, who looked insulted.

"Are you kidding? All I need is some coffee and I am good. I might be a little bitchy later on, so you might want to watch out, honey." Jubilee smiled at Jono, whose eyes widened.

"Make sure it's not decaffeinated and I am good." Kitty told Jubilee as she leaned against Piotr.

As soon as the elevator door opened, Warren was standing outside and looked almost surprised to see them. He knew everyone had gotten back, but didn't expect them to be up already. "How did it go?" He asked as they piled out of the elevator.

"We kicked ass, but Sam got hurt." Jubilee reported to Warren and gave him a nudge. "Don't worry, Betsy is fine." She winked at him and watched him slightly blush.

"That is good to hear." Warren said to the teenager and pushed the button to the elevator. "Oh that reminds me." He turned to look at Gambit who was leaning against the wall resting his eyes. "Gambit, a blond woman is here to see you. She didn't tell me her name, but said you would know her. She's in the dining room waiting." Angel told Gambit who opened his eyes and seemed more awake than before. When he heard blond he somewhat knew who it could be, but wasn't sure. There were five women who were blond that he knew of and one of them was dead and two others wanted him dead.

"Anythin' else y' can tell me about her?" He asked the once feathery mutant.

"She seemed very anxious to see you. She said it's been years." Angel added before the elevator opened and he stepped inside.

Remy frowned and went down the hallway followed by Rogue and a nosy Jubilee. The others went to the kitchen to get something to eat and drink for breakfast.

"Do ya know who it is?" Rogue asked him, but he didn't answer. She noticed how he seemed to be in a hurry and thought maybe he knew who came.

He finally stopped when he entered the dining room and stared in shock at the woman standing with her arms cross and a pleasant smile on her face. "Mon Dieu." He whispered as a small smile crept on his face.

"Who is that?" Jubilee asked Rogue quietly as Remy went to greet his guest.

"I don't know." Rogue whispered as Remy hugged the blond woman.

**Brotherhood**

Augustus walked up to his room, debating on which tools he should bring on the mission. He didn't practically like living and working with the Brotherhood, and the feeling was mutual with most of the other members. The only one he really got along with was Mystique and Toad. Wanda, John, and Pietro made it clear that did not like him and to stay out of their way.

He walked down the narrow hallway of the upper floor, passing the other rooms and began debating if he should quit the Brotherhood. He had no problems with regular people, unlike the rest of them. In fact, he knew many and were friends with them. He also wasn't being paid for his work with the Brotherhood, only a place to live. It just was not enough to make him want to stay.

Augustus thought perhaps maybe joining the X-men. He believed he had more in common with them than the Brotherhood. Not to mention, from what he heard, they would take in anyone. Another reason was because Rogue was there. He knew she would probably protest about his joining, but eventually, she would fall for him given time. He knew at one point she had feelings for him and would be able to play off of them.

He smirked to himself as his hand rested on the doorknob and he slowly began to turn it. Defiantly, after this job with the Brotherhood, he would show up at the X-Men's doorstep and claim they forced him to do it and he was only a victim. He'd give them all of Mystique's plans and look like a hero. Of course, he still had Gambit to deal with, but that was being taken care of.

He finally opened the door and found five strangers in his room. One man with reddish orange hair and goatee sat slouched in a chair with two men to his right and a female and male to his left. The man in the chair had a pleasant smile on his face as the door closed behind Pulse and he felt someone grab him from behind and a blade pressed against his neck.

"Bonjour, mon ami." The man that was sitting said as he stood up and began to slowly walk over to Pulse. "Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Emil Lapin. Our beaded haired friend behind y' is Gris Gris. He was de one y' called to put a hit on Remy LeBeau." Lapin introduced with a wave of his hand before he turned away from Augustus and walked slowly back to the chair before stopping in front of it.

"We would like to know why y' want him dead?" Lapin asked before turning back around and folded his arms across his chest like the other people standing next to him.

"He ruined everything. My life is messed up because of him." Pulse spat, but soon kept his mouth shut when he felt a small cut to his neck. A drop of blood trickled down his neck and into his shirt.

"Not a good answer." Emil sighed and almost looked sympathetic. He stepped forward again until he was face to face with Pulse. "Let me tell y' a little story so y' might understand. Once upon a time, dere were two guilds. One assassins, de other thieves. Dey hated each other with a passion and been at war for years. Den one magical day after much tragedy to both guilds, de leaders came upon a peace treaty. Neither assassin nor thief were to lay a hand on either one and were to work together." Emil explained and ran a hand over his jaw and goatee.

"Do y' know who de two leaders were?" Lapin asked Pulse, who shook his head. A smile appeared on Emil's face before he answered. "De Assassin's leader was MariusBoudreaux and Jean-Luc LeBeau was de Thieves." He stated and watched the color drain from the blond haired man's face.

Pulse realized his mistake instantly. He had heard the thieves and assassins had been at war and thought they still were. He thought that Gambit had been part of the Thieves Guild, but the son of the patriarch? He was not expecting that.

"Y' see y'r mistake, boy?" Lapin asked him with a satisfied smile. No one messed with his cousin if he had something to say about it.

"I heard there was a new leader." Pulse whispered as he felt the knife loosen, but Gris Gris grip remained the same.

"Oui, dere is, mais, de guilds still remain de Unified Guild of Assassins and Thieves. Technically, Remy should be de leader, but since his exile dere is a problem with it. So it went to de next member dat be family." Lapin told him as if he was a child.

"You're going to kill me, aren't you?" Pulse knew the instant he found out his mistake, he was dead. He threatened part of the guild, it meant death.

"If it was up to me, I'd have Gris take y' out, mais, de matriarch doesn't want dat. So dis is what we're goin' to do. Y' might want to pay close attention to dis." Lapin took a hold of Pulse's chin with his right hand and forced him to look into his eyes. "Y' go anywhere near Remy or anyone he cares about: y'r dead. Y' in de same state as him: y'r dead. If I was y', get as far away from dis place as possible and make sure y' don' have a run in with him. Cause if y' do, dere gonna be hell to pay for y'." Lapin warned him and let him go.

Gris Gris turned around and slammed Pulse into the door, knocking his head hard against the wood. Augustus fell backwards and landed on the floor. His vision blackened for a second and saw spots dancing in his sight. He rubbed his head and slowly sat up and to his surprise; the assassins and thieves were gone with the window open.

A small breeze blew in and swept the curtains to the side and brushed through Pulse's hair. He slowly got to his feet and looked out the window to find no one there, not even a foot print. "I'm out of here." He muttered to himself and ran to the closet for a duffle bag to throw his things in and leave. To hell with Mystique's plans, he wanted to save his own skin.

**X-Mansion**

Rogue watched from the sidelines as Remy finally pulled away from the blond woman, who was being shoved by a short black woman who had a bandana wrapped around trying to tame her thick hair.

"My chile!" The woman said happily as she grabbed Remy and hugged him. Rogue watched him hug the woman back, but her eyes were still fixed on the young blond from before. She looked to be the same age of Remy.

"What did y' do?" The short woman asked as she slapped Remy upside the head and looked at his tattered duster. She practically pulled the duster off and inspected the holes. "I send y' a new one when I get home. Y' better take care of de next one." She warned him.

"Désolé, Tante." Remy apologized, not noticing the blond woman walking over to Rogue. He was too busy with his Tante Mattie questioning him about his health, if he was eating right, and most importantly: if he was behaving.

Rogue felt a little intimidated by the blond woman as she crept closer. She was beautiful. Her long blond hair tied in a pony tail, keeping it out of her crystal blue eyes. She wore red pants with a low cut red top. She was almost glad the other boys hadn't joined them.

"Y' a friend of Remy's?" The blond asked her finally. Rogue didn't know why she felt nervous talking to this woman. She didn't know who she was or what her relationship with Remy was.

"Ya could say that." Rogue answered her and looked over to see Remy had gotten out of the hold of his Tante Mattie, who had nip picked over every little thing. She watched as he came over and stood beside the blond.

"Rogue, dis is Mercy LeBeau, my sister-in-law." Remy introduced them and could almost see the relief in Rogue's face. "Mercy, dis is Rogue, my girlfriend." He said and watched Mercy look back at Rogue curiously.

"It is a pleasure to meet y'." Mercy had a friendly smile on her face as she held out her hand. Rogue shook her hand and smiled back, until Tante Mattie came over and shoved both Remy and Mercy out of the way.

"Y' be datin' my Remy?" Tante Mattie asked Rogue, who shook her head nervously. She didn't know if this woman approved of her or not. A bright smile appeared on Tante Mattie's face as she grabbed Rogue and hugged her. "Don't feel intimidated by me, fille." She told Rogue and released her. "I don't bite." She ignored the snort from both Remy and Mercy.

"It's nice ta meet ya." Rogue smiled at the older woman. She felt much better knowing who each woman was and they had no problems with her dating Remy.

"Fille, come with me, dere some things we need to talk about." Tante Mattie began pushing Rogue out the door leaving Mercy and Remy by themselves. She knew Mercy had to explain to Remy what was going on and they needed privacy.

Remy watched Rogue leave and Tante Mattie shoving and protesting Jubilee away from the dining room. He turned back to Mercy and then looked down at the ground. As much as it brought him pleasure to see her again, it also brought pain. The thought of what happened to Henri was running through his mind and how she could even be in the same room as him was beyond him.

"We got a report of someone tryin' to place a hit on y'. Gris Gris got de report and brought it to me. Lapin and some of de others went to find de man and put a stop to him. Y' know someone by de name of Augustus?" She asked and watched his eyes finally meet hers.

Remy clenched his hands into a fist. 'Dat son of a bitch don't know when to stop, does he?' He thought to himself. 'Oui, I know him." He replied. "De little bastard is annoyin' and betrayed us." He added.

"He won't be botherin' y' no more. Of de many things Lapin is good, scarin' de shit outta people is his best quality." Mercy said with a smile to try and lighten the mood. Remy gave a soft chuckle and looked up at her, only for it to disappear. His gaze floated away from her and she finally had enough. She walked up to him.

"Listen to me, y' had nothin' to do with Henri's death. Y' didn't kill him." She placed her right hand on his shoulder and the other tilting his head up to look at her. She knew exactly why Remy was having a hard time looking at her. She knew he blamed himself for his brother's death. "Henri adored y' and wouldn' want y' blamin' y'rself for his death. I don't blame y' for what happened to him, neither does Tante, nor did Jean-Luc." Mercy told him and watched his eyes shift again.

"Dat's why he stopped takin' de elixir? He always did until he found out Henri was killed. If Henri didn't die, den poppa would still be alive." Remy broke free from her grip. Mercy looked at him with a sad expression. She knew he had blamed himself for their deaths, but not to this degree. Otherwise, she would have talked to him sooner.

"Losin' Henri broke his heart just like de day y' were exiled. With de peace treaty with de assassin's dey had to keep de exile in place and couldn't reverse it. Jean-Luc knew dat he wouldn't be able to bring y' back home without some of de assassin's demandin' somethin' else. He and Marius agreed dat nothin' is to happen to y' while outside New Orleans, but y' couldn't return. Jean-Luc had lost both of his sons and decided he didn't want to stay with de guilds anymore, but he was forbidden to leave unless by death. So he stopped takin' it." Mercy explained to Remy to try and ease his guilt. None of what happened was his fault.

"Besides, de man lived a long happy life. Not many people get to live to be one hundred and thirty." Mercy smiled at Remy. With the thieves' elixir, it kept them young as long as they took it. Mercy herself looked to be the same age as Remy, but she was really twice as old as he was, as was his brother.

"He adored y' from de moment he brought y' home, despite what some of de others said. He had de best judgment den any other man I've ever met and he proved right when he rescued y' from de streets." She said, while leaving out some information on what she knew. If Remy were to find out the real reason why Jean-Luc had taken him, he would be angry at his adopted father. She, Tante Mattie, and Henri all agreed never to speak of the event to Remy or anyone else who could use it against them.

Remy shrugged and thought over what Mercy said. For years he had tried to not think of what happened to Jean-Luc and Henri and cover it with something that didn't make it his fault instead of facing the truth. The truth was it wasn't his fault, but he still felt as if he should have done something to help Henri from Sabertooth. "Oui." He whispered.

"Don't be given me dat, where's dat cocky bratty chile dat drove Tante Mattie nuts growin' up?" Mercy asked him, finally getting him to smile. "Now y' keep actin' like every problem in de world is y'r fault, I'll send Tante back in here to whoop y'." She warned him and pointed a finger at him.

"Non, she may be older, but I bet she still got dat strong arm." Remy said to her and watch Mercy chuckle.

"Dat reminds me, Lapin and some of de others should be on deir way here by now." Mercy said to them as they both took a seat at the table and began talking about what she had been doing for the past few years.

**Outside**

"Dese chile always dis bad?" Tante Mattie asked Rogue as they watched Bobby throw an ice ball at Piotr and shatter against his metal armor.

"Nah, usually they're worse." Rogue told the older woman as they sat down outside on a bench. They watch the other teens finally go inside after Kitty threw a fit at Bobby for interrupting her and Piotr's kiss. Lorna was pulling Bobby inside after the short brown haired girl threatened she would smash his Barbie dolls and he kept defending his 'action figures'.

"How did y' meet Remy?" Tante Mattie asked the younger girl. If this was the girl who was dating the boy she raised, she wanted to make sure this wasn't just a small fling and that was it. If that was the case, she would send Rogue packing. The main reason why she was nice to Rogue was because Remy and Mercy were in the room. Now it was time to interrogate.

"He came ta the mansion and Ah was havin' some problems with my mutation. Ah got scared of hurtin' someone and went ta find a cure. He ended up followin' me. We grew closer after that until he asked me if Ah wanted ta go out with him. Ah said yes." Rogue replied to the older woman with a small smile on her face.

"What made y' chose dat instead of no?" Tante Mattie asked, not caring if she was being pushy.

"While we were travelin', he had this game pick a card and if the number was high then yes, if low then no. Ah did that and it said yes." Rogue said and watched the older woman's eyes narrow. Mattie looked at her suspiciously. If this was the only reason she said 'yes', it was not good enough. She was only saying it because that's what chance had given her. "Even if the card said 'no' Ah would have had a redo. Unlike a lot of other people, he accepted me for me and not for my mutation or anythin' else. Bein' around him makes me feel like Ah'm important and not just some other girl in the room." Rogue leaned back and felt the hard surface against her back.

"My mutation is that Ah can't touch someone without absorbin' them. For some reason, it doesn't work on him." She looked over at Tante Mattie with a small smile. "Even if Ah wasn't able ta touch him, Ah would still care about him. When we decided ta get tagether Ah was terrified my powers might hurt him. It's happened in the past with my first boyfriend, David. My powers have hurt a lot of people and it's broken my heart, but if it hurts Remy, Ah'd die." She said and watched a tear form in Tante Mattie's eyes.

The older woman grabbed Rogue, careful not to touch her skin now that she knew of what her powers were. She hugged the young girl close. "Dat's all I needed to hear, chile." Tante Mattie told Rogue before she released her. "Dat boy been through a lot of misery and blames himself for a lot of it. He needs someone dat cares about him. I worry about him bein' on his own again, it took so long just for us to get him to trust us." Tante Mattie mused to herself as she thought about when Jean-Luc brought Remy home for the first time.

"What do ya mean?" Rogue asked the older woman. She knew she could learn a lot about who Remy was from her that is if she decided to share the information.

"Jean-Luc took Remy in off de streets. He be around ten years old at de time. Didn't even have a name. De locals had nicknamed him Le Diable Blanc because of his eyes. De chile didn't have an easy early life. Most people were cruel to him because of de fact he was a mutant. It took us months to try and get Remy to trust us and not think de gonna throw him back on de streets. When we finally gained his trust, we made sure we kept it. From what I've learned from de chile is dat he will trust y' until dat trust is broken, den it's gone for good." Tante Mattie explained to Rogue so she got a good idea of what happened to Remy when he was younger. She knew he would never share the information and probably make up some false story to disguise what really happened. This also seemed to explain why Remy didn't care too much for Logan.

"I didn't know that." Rogue whispered to Tante Mattie. The older woman gave a sad smile and placed a hand on Rogue's shoulder.

"He wouldn't. He disguises his pain and tries to keep it buried inside himself so he don't have to think of it. What's easier to think about: y' grew up with a lovin' family or y' spent de first part of y'r life stealin' from folk and livin' on de streets always cold and hungry?" Tante Mattie stated and saw that Rogue understood. She smiled at the young girl. She knew Remy had made the right choice in choosing Rogue. She was more than just beauty; she had brains and seemed to be a very caring and loving person. She couldn't think of a better match.

Rogue sat next to the older woman taking in the information. She recalled Remy telling her that his family had died in a fire, but some of them were here. She figured this is what Tante Mattie was explaining, it didn't actually happen, but it was better than thinking of the truth.

"Nice day and a nice sight it is." They heard a male voice say from behind them and looked up to see Emil Lapin standing behind them with some of the assassins and thieves. Tante Mattie rolled her eyes as she stood up and put her hands on her hips.

"Took y' long enough. Thought it was a warnin'?" She glared up at Lapin, who kept his mischievous smile present on his face as she spoke to Tante Mattie.

"Oui, we did. He got de message." Lapin replied and looked down at Rogue and winked. He took her hand in his and kissed it. "And who is dis belle femme?" He asked.

"Dis be Remy's girlfriend." Tante Mattie replied and watched as Lapin quickly drop Rogue's hand and take a few steps back.

"Nice to meet y'. If y' ever get sick of my cousin, look me up." Lapin smiled down at Rogue, who turned away from him. Emil's smile disappeared when Tante Mattie stepped in front of him.

"Y' maybe older, boy, but I still take y' over my knee." Tante Mattie warned him and saw the thieves and assassins in the back snickering until she looked at them. All of them stopped instantly. "Let's go back inside, I'm sure Remy and Mercy are done talkin'." Mattie looked down at Rogue, when she turned back she found Lapin and the others had disappeared. "Mon Dieu, not good." She sighed as Rogue stood up next to her.

"Ah'm sure they can't have gotten in that much trouble." Rogue told the older woman, who only shook her head.

"Y' have no idea, chile." Mattie said to Rogue as they went into the mansion, hoping to find some of the thieves and assassins that disappeared.

As soon as they opened the door, they were greeted by Ororo who was walking down the hallway. The white haired woman looked surprised to see Tante Mattie. "Mon Dieu, petite Stormy!" Tante Mattie ran over and grabbed Ororo in a hug.

Rogue smiled as she saw Ororo gave the same 'don't call me Stormy' look she normally did with Remy. Except, she would never tell Tante Mattie she couldn't call her Stormy. "It's wonderful to see you again." Ororo smiled and hugged the older woman back before they separated.

"I see my magic still workin' good. Y' were an adorable chile, but y' much belle femme." Tante Mattie told her. When Ororo had met Remy, she was a child and had lost her memories of who she was. The two had traveled together, stealing and taking different jobs. It wasn't until one night Ororo recalled a memory of what had happened to her.

A mutant had kidnapped her from the mansion and transformed her into a child and wiped out her adult memories. The only thing she had been able to recall was when she had lived on the streets as a child and had lost her parents. When she told Remy of this, he called Tante Mattie and met her in Alabama. Luckily for Ororo, the voodoo priestess was able to reverse the effects done to her. After that, Ororo returned to Xavier's school and tried to drag Remy back, but he refused.

**Dining Room**

Mercy and Remy were chatting about things that had been going on in the guild and how Mercy was handling her role as the matriarch of the Unified Guild. It had been hard at first, especially for some of the assassins who now had a thief as a leader, but there was no one else. Marius, Belladonna, Julien, Jean-Luc, and Henri were dead and Remy was in exile. Since she carried the last name, she had been chosen as the leader.

Mercy kept her face calm and expressionless as Lapin began to sneak up on Remy from behind. She wanted to see if the years away from the guild had changed him and made him careless. She received her answer when Lapin was close enough; Remy grabbed him without even turning around and flipped him onto the table.

"Nice to see y' too, cousin." Lapin smiled up at Remy and Mercy.

"Y' should know better den try sneakin' up on me. I could hear y' from de time y' entered de house." Remy said as he stood up and helped Lapin up.

"What do y' expect, de dumbass never changed." Gris Gris spoke from the door before he slowly made his way in the room. Remy straighten up and backed away from Lapin. Every encounter he had with this assassin always resulted in a fight that Belladonna would always have to break up. Now she was no longer here.

"Gris." Remy eyed the man cautiously. He watched as one of the beaded strands of hair fell off of Gris Gris's shoulder and made a clicking noise when it touched the others. He was ready for the attack if this man was going to start something.

"Gambit." Gris Gris hissed and Gambit stared at the assassin. Neither one had liked each other. Gris Gris was best friends with Belladonna and tried to split Remy and her up when they had been engaged. He believed it would be better for his friend to not go along with this engagement even if it was to cause a peace between the two Guilds.

Gambit didn't say a word, only held a card in his hand in case he had to defend himself. Out of all the assassins, Gris Gris wanted his blood more than any of them with the exception of Belladonna's father. "I hate y'. Still do. I believe if Belladonna never met y' she would be alive today." He sneered. Gambit didn't take his eyes off the other man.

"For years, I wanted to hunt y' down and slice y'r throat. Dat was until I had overheard Julien talkin' to someone how he set up for Belladonna to be murdered. Dat night, I went to Marius and told him. De man didn' believe me. He never thought his son could do evil to his own flesh in blood. He pulled Julien in for questionin' and after hours finally admitted he had her killed." Gris Gris told him.

Flashback

"Y' can't do dis, pere! I'm y'r son!" Julien screamed as assassins stood on either side of him. His father stood above him with a sword to his throat.

"I have no son." Marius Boudreaux said to the man below him. He turned to Gris Gris and nodded to him before he met with Jean-Luc, Henri, and Mercy LeBeau, who were standing nearby.

"Y' don' have to do dis." Jean-Luc told the assassin leader. Marius had already lost one child and now he had lost another.

"He broke law and can' be trusted. I can' be lookin' over my shoulder because of dat boy." Marius responded to the thieves' leader. "Because of him, we've had years of bloodshed and chaos dat could have been avoided. Y' goin' to bring y'r boy back here?" He asked him.

"Non." Jean-Luc shook his head. "Remy was exiled and will stay dat way. We do not bend de rules. What's done is done." He said ignoring Henri's disapproving look.

"Shouldn' he at least know?" Mercy asked her father-in-law. She had always liked Remy and it seemed so quiet without him gone. Even Lapin and Theoren seemed less active than normal.

"Y' can tell him, Henri. I know he be in Paris right now." Jean-Luc said to his son, who nodded. Unknowingly it would be the last trip he would ever make. He turned back to the assassin leader and held out a hand. "We've both lost what is dear to us. At one point in time, we were willing to work together. Why not stop de bloodshed before more den our chile are lost to us." Marius took Jean-Luc's hand and shook it, starting the union of the Thieves and Assassin's Guild, later to be renamed the Unified Guild of Assassins and Thieves of New Orleans.

Present

"De man worked so hard to make each guild hate each other, he ended up bringin' dem together in de end. It was one of de happiest moments of my life when I got to avenge Bella." Gris Gris stated as he stood proud. He looked at Gambit and glared. "Still hate y', but not as much as him." He looked over at Lapin, who looked hurt.

"Still hate y' too, mon ami." Remy grinned as Gris Gris walked away. He turned back to his sister-in-law with a confused look on his face. "Why didn' y' tell me dat everyone knew dat Julien had set de whole thing up?" He asked her, feeling a tiny bit of hurt. He had spent years thinking about her death and of all the people who thought he had killed Belladonna, only to find out they already knew. Instead of hearing from loved ones, he heard it from the psychopath who killed Belladonna.

"We thought Henri told y'." Mercy smiled sadly and felt even more guilt. She wondered why she waited all this time to finally talk to him. Maybe if she had earlier, all of these things wouldn't have been a burden. "I remember de last time I talked to him, y' were still datin' Genevieve after y'r job was over. I guess he got distracted, but we'll never know." Mercy replied.

"PUT DAT DOWN NOW!" They heard Tante Mattie from the hallway and their heads turned to the entrance. Mattie came into the room with two thieves holding each by the ear. Their heads were tilted inward towards the older woman and Rogue followed behind, trying not to crack a smile.

"Caught dese two tryin' to make off with de paintin' in de hallway." She explained before she let them go and would let Mercy deal with them.

"Hate to break it to y', but it'd a fake." Remy told the two thieves who cursed and looked disappointed. A lot growl was heard as Logan stepped into the room with the two assassins, who were both eyeing his hands and each held a sword out.

"Gumbo, yer family is startin' to piss me off." The feral mutant growled as one of the assassin's held up Logan's hand. He unsheathed his claws at them and they looked more interested than scared.

"I don't think dey dat sharp. Let's see if dey break in half when I cut dem." One assassin commented to the others, but before they could practice Mercy stepped forward and separated the three before there were two dead assassins and an angry Wolverine.

"Dat enough! I told all of y' to behave. Dis is a sad day when Lapin is de responsible one." She glared at each of them as they lined up and bowed their heads. She didn't bother to include Gris Gris with those who were behaving because she knew how much the man despised having his and Lapin's name mentioned in the same sentence.

"They look scared." Rogue commented to Remy as she stood next to him.

"Y' don't piss Mercy off, she may not have as mean of a temper as Tante, but she can get y' good." Remy said with a smile as the assassins and thieves were being scolded.

"Remember dat time we stole uncle's 1775 Sherry when we were fifteen." Lapin joked with Remy who's face went from pleasant to terrified in seconds.

"Shut up, Lapin." He muttered, but it was too late. Tante Mattie had ears like a hawk and picked it up. She slowly approached them and Rogue got out of the woman's way. Both men stepped backwards as Mattie looked like she was ready to explode.

"What. Did. You. Do?" She said slowly as Remy placed Lapin in front of him, like he used to do when they would get in trouble as kids. Lapin would receive the wrath first and Remy would usually take off down the hall and later be caught. He figured she would tire herself out on Lapin before she got to him, but it never seemed to work.

**Upstairs**

"I'm bored." Jubilee muttered as she laid down on her bed and let her leg hang over the side. They had rested on the plane and since they got back after the long night and now she was recharged and full of energy again.

"We could go to the mall." Kitty suggested, knowing it was Jubilee's favorite pastime, but even that didn't sounds appetizing.

"Isn't there anything else to do?" Lorna asked as she leaned into Bobby's embrace. He traced his fingers along her arm after he wrapped it around her shoulder. She leaned her head underneath his chin and closed her eyes slightly.

"We'll we always talked about going camping, but I don't know if the adults will allow us since the Professor is still at large." Piotr suggested to them, but Jubilee ignored the rest. She knew how to persuade the adults easily. All it took was a little pouty lip and watery eyes and she could get away with murder.

"Maybe we should wait until after the Professor is less psycho." Bobby suggested to them.

"All in favor of going on the trip now, raise your hand?" Jubilee asked the group as she raised her hand and began to count. Kitty, Jono, Lorna raised their hands, leaving Piotr and Bobby by themselves.

"Traitor." Bobby whispered to Lorna, who smiled at him.

"It sounds like fun, besides; they haven't found a trace of the Professor yet." Lorna told him as she curled up closer to him and draped a hand across his chest.

"Okay it's settled, I'll start begging Wolvie right now. You guys tell Rogue what we're doing after Gumbo's family leaves." Jubilee ordered to them. She smiled to herself as her friends got up to do as she said. 'Heck with Cyke, I should be leader.' She thought to herself before she turned to the door and stopped. "Oh and check on Sam make sure he's alright." Jubilee told Bobby and Lorna with concern in her voice.

**Weapon X facility**

Dr. Windsor walked through the abandoned building where he used to work. A sickening stench of blood and rotting corpses from abandoned projects filled the air. This did not affect the scientist. He was used to the smell.

He opened the door to his office and found it destroyed. He quickly went over to the wall and felt around. He had hidden some of his work in a secret compartment and hoped that it had not been destroyed or found. He found the spot and pushed into the wall and a clicking sound opened the compartment. He opened the small door and smiled when he found his hidden work still there.

Dr. Windsor was about to take out the files when he heard the door open. It startled him and he turned around. No one else had been in the building when he entered. "Who are you?" He asked as three men dressed in black cloaks walked into the office and blocked the door.

"Greeting, Nathaniel Essex. We were wondering when you would show." The man said that was closest to him. He seemed to be the leader. The scientist looked shocked that these men knew his real name. He had gone by so many aliases to hide his identity and there were few that knew it.

"How do you know who I am?" Essex asked suspiciously and backed away and tried to get near his desk. He knew he had a gun in the top drawer.

"Our master has been watching you for a while and is interested in your work. He believes you will be an asset to his cause. That is if you accept." The leader responded. He moved a little closer, not trusting Essex. Their mission was to bring Essex to their master alive no matter what.

"Why?" Essex asked he stopped moving toward the desk. He had no other opportunities open at the moment and working for someone new could be beneficial. Depending on what the deal costs and who it was. He had no interest in working for another company such as Worthington Enterprises and while he found Weapon X to be an improvement, the other scientists got in his way.

"He is an ancient mutant who believes that only the strong shall survive. The weakness in the world will soon be gone. In the condition he is in, he needs help accomplishing his destiny. He has chosen you to join him." The leader announced as the other members joined him at his side.

"We are Clan Akkaba and have stood guard of his tomb for thousands of years waiting for him to awaken and bring in a new age. Our clan served him during his first rule and will remain loyal as long as he exists." The Akkaba leader told Essex. The two other cloaked members walked forward and stood on either side of Essex. Each grabbed a non-protesting arm and a portal opened in the office.

"Come, he awaits." The leader said and stepped through the portal while the other two escorted Essex into it before they all disappeared.

**End of Chapter 26**

"You'll place your friends at risk, but not me? Chere, dat's crazy!"  
"Right now, so am I. Fact is, they get hurt, it'll break my heart. But if it's you - ah'll die. –Gambit and Rogue- X-Men 109

**Please Read!!!**! The title of this story will be changing! When I originally made it, I never liked it; it just doesn't feel like it fits the story. My roommate gave me one that does work a bit more and fits much better. The New title will be called:** A Price to Charge**.

**Recap**: After Belladonna was killed and Gambit got blamed, he was exiled from the guild. Two years later, Gris Gris overheard Julien and found out he had hired Sabertooth to kill Bella. Julien was sentence to death and Marius (Bella's father) and Jean-Luc decided on a peace treaty between the two guilds. Jean-Luc did not allow Remy to come back because he knew some of the assassins would be angry at the fact the assassins lost more than the thieves and would shatter the peace. He sent Henri to Paris to tell Remy, who was dating Genevieve. Henri knew of Remy's job and didn't like that Remy wasn't being truthful to Genevieve of why they had first started dating and never told him about Julien killing Bella because he was with someone else. Sabertooth killed Henri and Genevieve. Jean-Luc was distraught over it and stopped taking the elixir of life that kept him young; afterwards he died, leaving Mercy the only one left after Marius died shortly after.

Sneak Peak: Chapter 27: **Camping, Psycho's, and Oh My…**

"Dink someone's enjoyin' himself." Remy commented.

"That's right, I'm a bad boy." Bobby said and turned over on his side. Lorna moved away from her sleeping boyfriend.

"Has he ever done this? I want to know what I am getting into." She asked Rogue who shook her head.

"Ah wouldn't know. The closest he got ta me was a kiss." Rogue responded and stared down at her ex-boyfriend.


	27. Camping, Psycho's, and Oh My

New title, same bad summary, same story, done by the same lowly writer.

Special Thanks to: **laenamoradadeROGUE, Texas-forever, cherish15, RogueNya, SHADOWoftheFOX, Wanda W, tfobmv18, gambitfan85**, and **T.A. Raskelt.** Thank you guys SO much for taking the time to review and tell me what you thought of the last chapter. I'd hand out cookies, but Deadpool took them with him on his secret mission.

Note: _italic_ means flashback, dream or Jono talking.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in here. I only borrow, traumatize them and give them back.

* * *

Chattering was heard throughout the night sky as a breeze swept through the branches in the trees. The small group of X-Men had traveled thirty minutes away from the mansion to a forest to go camping for the night. They brought two cars with all the equipment they would need for the long night ahead.

"We need more wood!" Jubilee ordered to Piotr who stared at the Asian girl who had been bossing them all around. He had come back from the woods with a few branches and apparently wasn't enough for the eighteen year old. "Um, please." She added to get him to stop staring at him. She thought maybe she needed to work on her leadership skills a little more. However, she was able to get the others to do things that would normally take five hours if Cyclops ordered them.

"Dis is stupid." Remy pouted as he and Rogue sat under a tree. Rogue only shook her head as this was the sixth time he had mentioned how he did not want to go camping. First he said 'no'. Then Lorna begged him, he said 'no'. Jono tried to bribe him with one of Logan's hidden beers that was found, he took it and still said 'no'. Finally, Rogue gave him a pouty lip and he cracked. Now he was not happy.

"What's wrong now? The ground too hard for ya?" Rogue asked him and leaned her head against his shoulder.

"We done nothin' but sit around or gather crap. How is dis any difference dan bein' back at de mansion?" He grumbled before he wrapped his arm around Rogue to bring her closer. The southern girl gave a slight nod. It was true. They hadn't really done anything, except try in vain to put up tents that ended up attacking Kitty and the poor girl went into a fit until Piotr calmed her down. However, it was nice to be out of the mansion and relax without worrying of someone attacking them or going on a mission soon. Of course she knew they would have to find the Professor when they got back, but for now it was nice not to think about it.

"What's the matter, don't like being outdoors, pansy?" Bobby rolled his eyes at the two southern under the tree.

"Ignore him." Rogue whispered to Remy as she saw him reached into his pocket for a card. She placed a hand over his to stop him. "Wait till later, we'll put a spider in his sleeping bag and hear him scream like a girl." She promised him and watched a evil smirk arise from the Cajun. Things would be much interesting later.

_It looks fine._ Jono told Jubilee as him and Lorna finished setting up the blankets and sleeping bags around the small wooden pile.

"Okay, someone is going to have to draw straws of who is not getting a blanket tonight." Jubilee placed a hand on her hip as she recounted the number of blankets set out. She could have sworn they had brought enough, but must have miscounted.

"We can share one." Lorna suggested to Bobby, who went pale. After Jubilee begged Logan to let them go camping, he instructed he wanted to speak with all the boys that were going. It was short and simple: keep your hands to yourself. Logan warned them if any of them touched one of the girls, they were going to get the crap beaten out of them. If they started making out, they would be in the med lab for weeks. If there was any inappropriate action that took place, one of them would be castrated. If anything happened, Jubilee would tell him.

"Um, you can have mine." Bobby told her quietly and moved away, almost afraid to touch Lorna. He knew Logan was nowhere to be seen, but the man scared the hell out of him even when he was miles away.

"Okay, anyone got a match?" Kitty asked as she finished stacking the wood into a neat pile. Bobby felt his hand through his pocket until he came across the booklet of matches he had swiped from the mansion before leaving. He dug them out and struck a match. As soon as the match fell into the wood, a tiny explosion caused the wood to catch on fire and startled the younger man. He looked at the small fire for a moment then glared at Gambit.

"What the hell are you doing, trying to set us all on fire!" Bobby yelled at Remy and walked over to the older mutant who was glaring at him.

"He didn't do nothin'. Now sit ya butt down before Ah put ya there." Rogue snapped at Bobby after finally having enough of his attitude towards Remy. She knew her ex didn't like her new boyfriend and the feeling was mutual for Remy.

"Besides, mon ami. If I was plannin' on settin' anyone on fire, it'd be only y'." Remy smiled innocently at the younger man who was being pulled away from Lorna.

"No more fighting for the rest of the night. Tomorrow if you guys want to kill each other, go ahead. This is our time away from all the weird stuff that happens at the mansion and I want to enjoy it." Kitty told Bobby as she sat down on a soft purple blanket covering the cold grassy ground.

"Yeah, ten bucks says that when we get back, the Professor is found and we got to go after him." Jubilee sighed as she leaned into Jono's shoulder as they both watched the fire burn.

_I never really got to meet him. When Lorna and I arrived, he didn't want to see us. The next thing we knew, everyone was saying he was all evil and disappeared. _Jono stated as he picked up a twig lying near his feet and tossed it lightly into the fire. Sparks popped up from the flame and danced lightly in the air before falling back into the burning pit.

"Very nice man." Rogue spoke first as she recalled her first meeting with Xavier. It had been scary for her since Logan had been unconscious and Cyclops and Storm came out of nowhere and saved her and Logan from Sabertooth. She didn't know if they were just like the feral mutant that attacked or if they wanted to help because it was the right thing to do. She had been left alone to make the decision and felt calmer when she talked to the head of the school. He was not an intimidating man. He generally cared for his students and them learning how to control their powers.

"Yeah, he could find ways for you to believe in yourself even when you couldn't. It was like he saw something no one else did." Bobby gave a soft smile as he laid down on the blanket with his head on Lorna's lap. She smiled down at him and brushed her fingers through his hair as he gently closed his eyes.

"And he was there if something was troubling you." Piotr said with a sad expression on his face. Kitty looked up at him and moved her hand over to his and squeezed it. Before he arrived at the school, his sister had died of a terrible illness. It had split his family apart and he needed to find somewhere else that did not remind him of his beloved sister. He sat with Xavier over many sessions and he let the younger man speak of his sister. Of the happy and sad memories that led up to her death.

"He sounds really nice." Lorna commented as she noticed Bobby was drifting off to sleep and tapped his cheeks, startling him.

Rogue gave a small nod. She didn't know why she didn't notice something was wrong with Xavier when she had gone to him. It had seemed out of character for him to say those things to her, but at the same time she was distraught over her powers coming back she would have left even if he told her to stay.

Rogue looked at Remy and noticed he hadn't been paying attention to anything that had been said. Her friends continued to talk, but their voices faded into the background. She followed Remy's gaze down to a white gold pocket watch in his hand. His thumb brushed over the top of it and watched as the light from the fire glowed against it.

"_Y' better behave!" Tante Mattie pointed a finger at Remy who was rubbing his head after Mattie whacked him and Lapin in the head. His red haired cousin had already said good-bye to him and had gotten as far away from Tante Mattie as he could. He already knew it would be a long trip home. He prayed that Mercy didn't have the older woman sit next to him. _

"_Oui, I be good." Remy said to Mattie before the older woman hugged him. _

"_Y' better or I come back and den y' really gonna get it." She warned him, but Remy saw a small tear in her eye as she pulled away. Like Mercy, she wanted to stay longer in New York, but knew she was needed back at in New Orleans. _

"_Don't worry, Ah'll make sure he behaves." Rogue said as she stepped beside Remy and he wrapped an arm around her shoulder and brought her closer. _

"_Y' best be. Dat reminds me, before I forget." Mercy snapped her finger and called over one of the thieves that brought over a small black box. She took it from the thief with a nod and turned back to Remy. "Dis is for y'." She handed the small box to her brother-in-law. _

_Remy lowered his arm from Rogue's shoulder and took the small box in both hands. She watched as he lifted the lid and found a beautiful white gold pocket watch inside. The chain was delicate strands that fell over Remy's hand as he picked up the watch. By the age, Rogue guessed it had to be over eighty years old. "Mon dieu." He whispered as he stared at the watch like he was mesmorized by it. _

"_I promised Jean-Luc dat I give it to y' de next time I saw y'." Mercy told him with a sad smile on her face. She knew how much this watch meant to Remy. It was the whole reason why he had graced their home. While he had been wandering the streets as a child, he came across Jean-Luc and found this pocket watch sticking out of his lower pocket. He had swiped things from harder places and figured it would be easy and he would be able to cash in on whatever money he could get for it. He did not expect for Jean-Luc to grab him before he could get his hands on it. After much questioning, Jean-Luc brought him to his home after he found out Remy had no parents. After much convincing, Remy decided to stay with the LeBeau's and adopted into their family._

Remy finally closed the pocket watch and put it away when he noticed Rogue was looking at him. "Desole." He apologized and looked back at the ground. They came here to have fun and all he could think about was how he missed his adopted family.

"It's not a big deal. Ah'm surprised ya brought it with ya instead of keepin' it at home where it's safe." Rogue suggested to him. She knew how much it meant to him and didn't want it getting lost. Of course, she doubted he would let anything happen to it. It made her a little envious that he had something from a loved parent. She would have given anything to have more than memories of her beloved aunt who was more like a mother to her than her real one.

They sat there the rest of the night listening to the conversation and once in a while joining in on it. As it grew darker and the half moon rose higher, they settled in for the night after putting out the fire.

**X-Mansion**

"Why did you let them go without approving it with me?" Scott demanded as he got in Logan's face. He didn't care if the other mutant showed his claws. They were right back to where they had been before with Logan moving in on his territory. He thought perhaps Logan had changed a little, but after he went on his own during the Weapon X mission and now approving for eight team members to leave when they were still in the middle of a crisis was not acceptable.

"The kids have been bored outta there mind, they needed ta get outta here. Besides, it's only for the night." Logan said in annoyance and felt like pushing Scott away from him. He didn't mention the fact that Jubilee begged him until he cracked.

"I am tired of you-" Scott began to shout when an alarm went off throughout the mansion. "Shit." He cursed, one of the rare occasions when he would let one slip. He ignored his fight with Logan and marched down the hall, not caring that Logan was on his heels. He needed to get down to the basement to Cerebro. Something major was happening for it to go off. 'Please tell me they did not find the Professor.' He silently prayed, but knew the chances were good that the Shadow King had finally made himself known.

They found Ororo in front of the elevator and pressing the lift to go down. "Do you think it's him?" She asked as the doors opened and the three entered and waited for the doors closed.

"Not unless there is another powerful mutant running around." Scott glanced over at her and then straightened his shoulders as the doors opened and he hurried down to Cerebro.

"We won't be able to go tonight. Everyone just got back this morning and will be too tired." Ororo said in worry as she followed after Scott who was speed walking down the metal hallway.

"Won't matter anyways, Logan let the others go camping." Scott told her with a hint of anger in his voice.

"Like I said, Scott, we won't be able to do anything tonight anyways. We would have to wait till morning." She defended her ex and didn't notice the sideways glance she received from him.

They entered Cerebro without further words and found Betsy standing before the machine with Warren on the platform behind her watching the terrifying events unfold. "Shit." Logan whispered as they saw buildings being ripped apart as a lone figure hovered in mid air and smashed the buildings as if they were nothing. Images of people screaming and grabbing their heads were shown until their signature disappeared.

"We got to do something." Scott demanded and looked at the others who watched as the Shadow King finally stopped tearing the city apart. Without even realizing it, Ororo had turned away and found her head buried in Logan's shoulder with his arm protectively over her.

"He is setting up to disappear again." Betsy told the others before the Shadow King's signature disappeared from view and left the city burning.

"Were you able to get a lock on him?" Scott asked her as he moved past Warren and stood by Betsy's side.

"Yes, Cerebro got a lock on his brain waves and is tracking him." She responded to Cyclops and then frowned. "Well, he went from destroying Chicago to teleporting across half of the world to Cairo, Egypt. He's not doing anything, but sitting there." She said in confusion. How did a man go from destroying a city to teleporting to the other side of the earth and not do anything else. Something wasn't adding up.

"It's almost like he is taunting us." Warren commented as he took a step back.

Ororo freed herself from Logan and felt embarrassed about taking comfort in his arms after they had broken up. It wasn't right. "I'm sorry." She apologized quietly enough so the others would hear them.

"Nothin' ta be sorry about, darlin'." He gave her a small smile and caused her to smile back. He watched as her eyes widened in horror and turned to the others.

"If they recognize that it was Charles that had destroyed the city, they're going to be coming after him. Everything he has worked for will be gone. Mutants will be seen more of a threat now that the one man that stood up for mutants and humans to be equals destroyed an entire city." She stated and watched Scott turned around slowly. He didn't know how to clean up this mess. He didn't think anyone in the room did. Xavier would be seen as a threat just like Magneto was to the public eye.

There was nothing they could do to stop what the media would say. Xavier had made himself known worldwide. His once peaceful image was now ruined. The only thing Scott knew they could do was stop the Shadow King before he destroyed Xavier's image more than it already had been.

**Kane, Pennsylvania 2:00 A.M.**

The residents of the bricked two story mansion had turned the lights out hours before and gone to get some rest for the night. Unknown to them, they had been watched for the past five hours as the Brotherhood circled the property. "Do you want us to move in?" Pyro asked over the walk-talkie to Mystique's group who were on the other side of the house.

Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, Revanche, and he had taken the back while Toad was up in the trees in the front of the house peering inside. Once they were given the signal by the fly-catching mutant, each team would move in and apprehend Graydon Creed and anyone else that may have lived there. As far as he knew, it was only him and his wife.

Toad looked down through the branches of the tree he was perched in and gave the signal to Mystique to go ahead. "Now." Mystique's voice said over the radio and the small group moved in.

Revanche did not wait for the three younger mutants, she smashed through the glass of the door and ran in. "Why was she even with us if she was going to do that?" Quicksilver looked over at his two teammates who were equally confused.

"Don't know or care." Scarlet Witch said as Pyro opened the smashed door for her and kicked away some of the glass shards in the way. "What I don't understand is why we all have to be here to get one person. I think Mystique could have handled this on her own." She snarled as they heard racket coming from the upstairs.

"Graydon Creed is a politician. She probably figured there would be more security, but obviously no one cares if he gets killed." Pyro answered her as they heard a woman scream from the upstairs.

Quicksilver ditched his teammates and sped down the massive long hallway towards the double staircase. Within a flash, he was up the stairs and searching the rooms for the source of the scream. "Get your hands off of her you filthy disease creature!" He heard a male voice shout. He followed it all the way down to the last room on the right and just as he arrived he saw Mystique pull out a gun and shot the woman in the head.

"You son of a-" Graydon Creed shouted before Revanche knocked him out and handed the man over to Avalanche to carry down the stairs and pass on to Blob as soon as he got outside.

"We are done here." Mystique said in a cold voice as she put the gun away and stared at the stunned Quicksilver. He hadn't expecting them to kill anyone. Injure or knock unconscious sure, but he didn't know if it was necessary for this woman to be murdered.

"She would have alerted the authorities right away and we can't have that yet. This gives us some time." Mystique told him as the others passed him and walked down the hallway. "Besides, after all he has done, he deserves some misery in his life." She stated before leaving and passed Pyro and Scarlet Witch, who looked annoyed again.

"What happened?" Scarlet Witched asked her silver haired brother who shut the door behind him. She knew something was wrong, normally he was so hyper she wanted to toss him into the wall. Instead, he seemed shook up about something.

"Nothing, let's go." Quicksilver gave his sister a small smile before following the others and trying to forget what he saw. Mystique had been helping his sister learn to control her powers better than the X-Men had. He owed the woman that. He may not agree with her methods, but if it meant his sister's safety and sanity, he would slaughter a village if needed.

**Forest**

_Remy opened his eyes and found himself in darkness. His back ached and felt cold steel underneath him. He tried to sit up, but his arms and legs shackled to the metal table beneath him. He opened his mouth to yell for someone, but his voice was not working. 'What is goin' on?' He thought to himself and looked over to his left in horror to see all the X-Men's bodies floating inside a green tube. Masks were covering their faces and none of them seemed conscious. _

"_Isn't this interesting." He heard a male voice to his right and looked over, almost wishing he didn't. What he saw made him sick. Rogue was strapped to a table identical to his and two men in lab coats were cutting into her. _

_Remy struggled to free himself, but it came to no use. His powers were not responding and he couldn't save Rogue. He opened his mouth to call out her name and to yell at the men to leave her alone, but once again, he remained mute. Her green eyes remained open and stared the ceiling as more cuts were added to her body._

"_I wouldn't worry about her, boy." He heard a familiar voice and looked up to see Dr. Windsor standing above him with a mask over his mouth. Like the other men, he wore a white lab coat and placing on a pair of gloves. In his right hand he held a scalpel. "I'd start worrying about yourself." He laughed before he brought the knife down on him. _

Remy shot up from his sleep. Sweat was pouring down his face and he was breathing heavily. His red on black eyes were looking around and he felt a bit relief to know that it was only a dream. 'Still, why did I let de man live?' He thought to himself. He now had a feeling he had made a mistake in letting the scientist get away.

"Are ya alright?" Rogue asked as she sat up beside him. She had heard him tossing and turning and it looked as if he was having a nightmare. Remy looked at her and held her close to him while ignoring the worried expression on her face. It must have been a bad dream to startle him this much.

"Oui, it just a dream." He whispered to her and kissed to top of her head before he rested his against hers.

"Ya wanna talk about it?" She asked him as she held him close.

"I dreamt dat I lost y'." Remy responded. He left out the part of Dr. Windsor and the others. It had scared him, but not as much as what the other men were doing to her.

"Ya ain't gonna lose me." She tried to assure him. "Ah won't leave ya." She promised. All of the sudden they heard moaning coming from across the bodies.

"That's right. Oh that feels good." They heard Bobby say in his sleep. Remy looked at Rogue and raised an eyebrow.

"Don't look at me. Ah don't wanna know what's goin' on in his head." She responded as Lorna opened her eyes and sat up. Her green hair was sticking up in places and had a twig on the right side. She looked down at Bobby.

"Oooohhhh." Bobby moaned louder, now waking up Jono.

_Some of us are trying to sleep._ Jono complained from his spot on the ground.

"Dink someone's enjoyin' himself." Remy commented.

"That's right, I'm a bad boy." Bobby said and turned over on his side. Lorna moved back from him.

"Has he ever done this? I want to know what I am getting into." She asked Rogue who shook her head.

"Ah wouldn't know. The closest he got ta me was a kiss." Rogue responded and stared down at her ex-boyfriend.

"I have never heard him make that noise before." Piotr said as he got up too. Apparently Kitty heard Bobby moaning and made him get up.

"That's good. Now harder!" Bobby yelled in his sleep.

"Oh my god." Rogue covered her mouth to keep from laughing.

"And y' say my friend was weird." Remy whispered to Rogue, who slapped him playfully on the shoulder.

"Who is he dreaming about?" Lorna asked the others, feeling a bit worried. She didn't know she had competition.

"The question is, do you really want to know?" Kitty asked her as Bobby held his blanket close to his body.

"Should I wake him?" Lorna asked the others. No one replied.

"OH YES!" Bobby yelled and then opened his eyes to find Lorna starring at him in shock. He put the blanket over his lap and sat up and then realized everyone was looking at him. "What?" He asked, blushing.

"Got a friend we don't know about?" Jubilee asked him.

"What are you talking about?" Bobby asked, trying to act as if nothing had happened. Truth was, he remembered his dream and now felt extremely embarrassed and disturbed. 'I got to talk to someone when we get back. Where the heck did that come from?' He thought to himself.

"You were moanin' in your sleep, sugah. Not ta mention talkin'." Rogue told him, causing him to blush harder.

"Who were you dreaming about?" Lorna asked him. He hid his face under the blanket. "Come on, I won't get mad. If anyone says anything I'll beat them up." She said and looked at the rest of the group.

"I don't want to say." Bobby said from underneath the blanket.

"Come on, Drake. Is it someone here?" Jubilee asked him. There was a nod from underneath the blanket yes.

"Is it Lorna?" Kitty asked him and he shook his head no. "Is it a female here?" She asked him and the blanket started trembling and finally shook no. Remy, Piotr, and Jono all looked at each other with worry and scooted back.

"Okay, we know that much, can ya tell us who it is? No one will get mad." Rogue promised him. Bobby finally revealed who he had a dream about.

Two second later.

"AHHHHHHH!" Echoed throughout the forest, awakening some of the animals that were sleeping peacefully.

**End of Chapter 27**

Just to make it clear, I am not turning Bobby gay. My friend asked how far I would go into a slash fic, well this is as far as I will ever go.

Some scenes in this chapter got cut, such as Jubilee bribing Logan, driving to the camp site, and the guild leaving. They were pretty boring and not really necessary so it got a little summary in the camping part without boring ppl to death. Besides, I'm trying to make the chapters a little shorter (never thought I would say that). I think I have too many characters that's why the chapters are so long, but well, some will be having an accident very soon and I won't have to worry about them.** Sorry, but don't have a sneak peek for the next chapter, but we get to see baldy.**


	28. Battle Plan

Updating maybe slower than before, I have to work 25 days straight (btw 2 jobs so it is legal :( I'll be working on it as much as I can, but it might take a while.

Side note, thank you Mr. Claremont for writing Gambit again (except the current Exiles fish thing scares me), love X-Men Forever! It has actually restored my excitement for the comics, even though it is only the one book.

Special thanks to:**k-tiraam, scarleteyes21, RogueNya, bologna121, tfobmv18, DarkBombayAngel, Wanda W, laenamoradadeROGUE, Dark, gambitfan85, Star-of-Chaos,** and **BelleDayNight**. Thank you guys SO much for reviewing the last chapter!

Disclaimer: I own none of these characters, only borrowing them until they get mad and go on strike.

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The younger mutants arrived home at nine in the morning after stopping to get some breakfast on the way. They opened the door to find a not so pleased Cyclops waiting for them. Scott had his arms crossed over his chest and Bobby could swear he was glaring at them from underneath the shades.

"Logan may have given you permission to leave, but when we are under a critical situation you cannot decide to get up and leave whenever you feel like it." Scott lectured them causing Lorna, Jono, Piotr, and Kitty to look guilty. Bobby placed the blankets he had been carrying down to the side while Jubilee rested a hand on her hip.

"We'll its boring here and there was no situation at the time we decided to leave!" Jubilee defended the group.

"If you had been here last night you would have known that the Shadow King has appeared and destroyed a city." Scott looked down at the younger girl who opened her mouth and then closed it. "We have also run into another situation with the Brotherhood kidnapping Senator Graydon Creed last night." He told the younger mutant and missed the shock expression on Rogue's face.

"What?" She whispered only loud enough for Kitty and Remy to hear her. Her boyfriend looked down at her and watched as her hand came to cover her mouth.

"Get your things upstairs and then report to the War Room immediately. I will expect you all there in ten minutes." Scott told the group before turning to walk down the hallway to the elevator.

"Come on, let's bring this upstairs before he comes back to lecture us some more on how we can all be perfect like him." Jubilee rolled her eyes and headed upstairs along with a few of the others.

Remy and Kitty stayed behind as the others left and saw Rogue was shaking and starring at the floor. Remy placed a comforting hand on the southern girl, but she remained the same. "Rogue what's wrong?" Kitty asked her friend with concern.

Rogue's eyes finally drifted up to her friend and boyfriend who looked at her with a worried expression. "They kidnapped Graydon." She whispered again and folded her arms over her chest.

"I'm not really surprised, the guy hates mutants and has been pulling for us to be destroyed or tracked down. Heck, he was Senator Kelly's biggest supporters." Kitty said to her friend and watched Rogue rest her head into Remy's chest. He wrapped an arm around her and rubbed up and down her arm.

"He's my cousin." She told the two, shocking both of them. Kitty's mouth hung open and stared at Rogue for a moment. She didn't understand how her friend could be related to someone so hateful. Remy kept his poker face on, but his thoughts were the same as Kitty's.

"Not by blood, but his mom was my god mother that looked after me. Ah stayed at their house for years when Ah was little because my parents moved to another country for a while." Rogue added and closed her eyes. It was the happiest time of her childhood growing up at her Aunt Raven's house. "He wasn't always like this. He was nice when Ah was little and happy. Ah didn't hear what happened, but somethin' happened to cause him to hate mutants. He stopped talkin' to my aunt and started in politics. My aunt's house burned down eight years ago and no one had heard of what happened to her. They said they never found a body, but she hadn't shown up anywhere either." She slowly opened her eyes after pushing away the tears as she thought of her beloved aunt.

"Wow." Kitty mumbled and placed a hand on Rogue's arm. "I never knew that. I'm sorry." She looked at Rogue who remained leaning against Remy.

"We'll kick de Brotherhood's ass to get him back." Remy promised Rogue after sensing her distress. He knew he would leave in a heartbeat if one of his cousins had been kidnapped by an angry bunch of mutants. Whatever she chose to do, he would follow. If she wanted to ditch the X-Men's plan and hunt down Creed herself, then he would help. The only thing that bothered him was her cousin's last name: Creed. He hoped it was just a coincidence that that man he hated most in the world had the same last name as this man.

"Let's get downstairs. Hopefully they thought of somethin' during the time we were gone ta think of a plan." Rogue said as she pulled away from Remy.

**15 Minutes Later**

Scott watched as the younger X-Men finally took their seat after being five minutes late. He didn't know where all the rebelling was coming from but it would be put to a stop when they got back. They needed to unite the team instead of its members doing as they pleased.

"Thank you for finally showing up." Scott muttered and turned to look at Ororo who was standing next to him. She watched the younger members with a frown, specifically Gambit who had pulled out a deck of cards and began shuffling through them before he started playing solitaire. She wondered why he seemed to be taking an interest in making Scott mad, but knew it was probably due to him giving orders, something Remy did not like to follow.

"We are in the middle of two situations that need to be dealt with immediately. The Shadow King destroyed a city and hundreds of people within ten minutes. The media is exposing any footage they can and they have already identified the Professor as the one who did it. We have targeted his location and have a lock on it. He has not made another move yet." Cyclops explained to the group as he looked at each of them.

"At the same time, last night the Brotherhood infiltrated Senator Graydon Creed's home. They killed his wife and then kidnapped him. As some of you know, he is against mutants and wants us gone. This will only fuel his anger towards us, but we cannot let the Brotherhood do anything to him or it will only make the situation worse. People are already trying to hunt him down and…" Ororo was explaining when she heard Bobby snort from the left side of the table.

"He's a politician, I'm surprised people aren't overjoyed that he is gone." Bobby commented from next to Jubilee and Lorna and didn't notice the hurt look Rogue gave. She knew he wouldn't have made the comment if he had known it upset her. She didn't know whether it was wise to tell the others that the senator was her estranged cousin. She could get mad at him for the rally's he had set up against mutants and for blaming everything that happens on mutants, with the exception of what Magneto did because that was fact. In her mind, she still pictured the teenager who would play hide and seek with her and play with the stuffed animals until she got too tired.

"Nevertheless, we cannot leave him with the Brotherhood." Ororo continued while eyeing Bobby before Scott took over.

"To destroy the Shadow King will not be easy." Scott stated and looked across the group from left the right. "Not only does he have the professor's telepathic abilities, but he has Magneto's control over magnetism. Storm and I went over a plan that we believe will defeat him, if Rogue agrees." He said and turned his attention to the startled girl. All eyes fell on her and she looked at them before looking at Scott.

"What do Ah have ta agree ta?" Rogue asked. She felt Remy's hand on hers as she waited for Scott's answer.

"Psylocke has been working with your telepathic abilities for a few days and even though they are not as strong as the professor's or Jean's, we need you to enter his mind and defeat him through there." The X-Men leader explained and waited for the response he knew that was coming.

"WHAT!?" Two shouts came, but neither were from Rogue. Logan stood up and glared at Scott. Remy was the other and held Rogue's hand tighter.

"Ya just said she wasn't as strong as him. Why the hell would ya send her inta his mind?" Logan growled as he fist slammed into the metal table, denting it slightly. It would have gone right through if he had hit harder.

"We are not sending her on a suicide mission. Because of her abilities, she has other powers that can help her fight him. She would be able to cancel out Magneto's powers with her own control over metal. She has the advantage of having super strength, flight, phase through objects, healing factor, ice, and manipulate fire. I am not saying it would be easy, but while she is trying to defeat him, we will be distracting him on the outside to help make it harder for him to concentrate on Rogue." Scott tried to explain, but Logan was not sitting down. Instead, the feral mutant stared at Cyclops as if debating where he should stab him.

"We are not forcing you to do this if you do not want to." Ororo stepped in to draw attention away from Scott. Rogue shifted in her seat as she debated what to do. She wanted to help in any way she could, but didn't know if she was strong enough.

"Ah don't know if Ah can. When Ah faced Malice, it was in my mind and Ah had more control, wouldn't this be different?" She asked quietly. She saw Logan finally sit down out of the corner of her eye.

"Not necessarily." Betsy answered from next to Warren and on the other side of Scott. "When you fought Malice you were evenly matched, but due to it being your mind, it gave you the advantage. Having the other powers may give you advantage over him. Also don't forget that Xavier is still in there somewhere. If you are able to find the real him, he will be able to help you." She explained.

Rogue nodded as she debated and noticed the others were looking at her still. She found it ironic that before she was unable to do anything, now the world rested on her shoulders. She didn't mind being the one that had to defeat the Shadow King from inside his mind, it was the thought of failing. If she was not successful what did that mean for everyone else? Would the Shadow King destroy the X-Men as he did the city the night before? She knew it was a chance she would have to take and do her best to be successful.

"Ah'll do it." Rogue finally answered, ignoring the concerned expression on her friend's faces as she looked at Cyclops.

"Are you sure, Rogue?" Jubilee asked with concern. She had lost her friend twice already, once when she left on her own free will only to be captured by Magneto and the second when she absorbed Monet and went into a short coma. She didn't know how much more luck Rogue had on her side.

Rogue nodded before Scott continued. "We will be splitting up into two teams again, one will go after the Shadow King while the other stops the Brotherhood. The teams have been changed from our last mission at Weapon X where some members did not cooperate." He muttered and glared at Logan and Gambit, both who were ignoring the comment.

"Storm's team will go after the Brotherhood and will consist of: Wolverine, Psylocke, Shadowcat, Jubilee, and Colossus. She will instruct you of her plan on the flight there. My team will stop the Shadow King and will have: Iceman, Polaris, Gambit-" He ignored the groan that came from the younger mutant. "-Rogue, and Chamber. Our plan is much simpler as discussed earlier; we will distract him while Rogue infiltrates his mind. Is there any other comments or questions before we leave?" Cyclops asked at last. Only a few hands went up.

"Will the Professor be back to normal after we defeat the Shadow King?" Shadowcat asked first.

"We do not know for certain, but with the darkness gone from his mind, he should return to normal. However, due to the chaos he brought, I fear people will not be forgiving of his actions." Storm replied with a sad expression on her face.

"After all this, are we finally done with people trying to destroy the world or attack people? I mean there is no one left, we've already stopped Magneto again, someone from Wolverine's past, and one of our friends turn evil and try to destroy the world. So after this we can finally relax, right?" Iceman asked as he rested his arms on the table.

"I suppose, unless there are other people that Wolverine pissed off in his past." Cyclops commented and received the middle claw from Logan. "Is there anything else?" He asked one last time.

"Bobby had a wet dream about-" Gambit commented before Iceman interrupted him quickly.

"-SHUT UP, CAJUN!" Iceman shouted and glared at the grinning Gambit. "You all swore you wouldn't tell!" He added and noticed Logan was giving him a funny look.

"So you are partially into guys in your dreams, it's not a big deal. We don't judge you." Jubilee smiled at Iceman, who turned red and sank into his seat. Lorna placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Thank you for sharing that bit of information that has nothing to do with the mission. We're going to leave now, if you have any other questions ask your leader on the flight. Please keep random comments to yourself until after the missions have been completed." Cyclops ordered before dismissing the group.

Several of the X-Men scattered and reported to the jet they were assigned to and waited for everyone to arrive. Shadowcat, Rogue, and Gambit were the last ones to leave the War Room. Rogue was still feeling uneasy about the entire mission. She was nervous about going against the Shadow King, but more nervous about something happening to her cousin. Her only hope was the X-Men were successful in rescuing Graydon before the Brotherhood had a chance to do anything to him.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure we get him back. I won't let anything happen to your cousin, even if he is kind of a jerk." Shadowcat promised to her friend before she hugged her.

"Thanks." Rogue smiled and released the younger girl. "Ya protect yaself and the others too."

"Not a problem. Gumbo, you better keep her safe." Shadowcat warned the Cajun and pointed a finger at him.

"Don't have to worry about dat, petite." Gambit smiled and wrapped an arm around Rogue's waist to bring her closer. The three slowly walked out of the War Room and down the hallway to find Warren watching Psylocke leave. He had a sad expression on his face and his arms were folded across his chest.

"You alright, sugar?" Rogue asked the once-winged-mutant.

"Yeah, I just wish my wings would grow back." Warren sighed and moved his right hand up to the back of his left shoulder and felt where the wings sprouted from before. Now he didn't even feel the change like he did when he was younger and cut them off. Now it felt like they were never coming back. It felt like he was slowly losing everything, first his father and now his wings. His only saving grace was the beautiful blond British woman that had entered his life a short while ago. She helped distract him from his pain and find joy again.

"Maybe it'll happen soon. Just give it some time." Shadowcat tried to encourage the depressed man, who only shrugged.

"Rogue, Gambit, and Shadowcat, report to the jets now!" Cyclops voice said over the intercom.

"Dang, why is he so pushy? Ain't like a few seconds is gonna make a difference." Rogue huffed as the three walked to the jets.

"Nah, he's just pissy because he got a stick shoved up his ass." Gambit told her as they separated from Shadowcat and entered the Blackbird II.

**Brotherhood House**

The others had been ordered to stay downstairs while Mystique stood alone with the prisoner. Graydon Creed glared at the blue woman from his the chair he was bound to. A dirty brown rag was tied around his mouth and his hands ached and itched from being tied behind his back with rope.

"It's been a while, son." Mystique finally said as she shape shifted into the woman she used to look like nine years ago. Graydon was only able to continue glaring at the woman he despised since he was powerless to say anything.

"I see you are still mad at me for leaving you with your father for a week." She smiled as she stood next to him and ran a hand up his neck until it came to the side of the gag and pushed it aside so he could speak.

"I will never consider you my mother nor that thing my father. You hid from me what you really were all my life. If I had known I was born from a pair of freaks, I would have run away first chance I got. You and the rest of your kind need to be killed off!" Graydon shouted at his mother.

It was her that had given him motivation to eradicate mutants from the world. During his childhood he had asked who his father was, but she never said or showed him a picture. Nine years ago she said she would take him to see his father and left him there for a week. The man was a monster. He would play games with him by letting him free only to be hunted down and tortured. He had several scars on his body due to that madman, both physically and mentally.

It was at this time he knew he would never forgive his mother. She knew what kind of man Victor Creed was and still allowed him to meet him. When he was able to escape from his father, he vowed revenge on his mother. He hired men to burn down her house while she was still inside, but it didn't work. He had been given reports that she was also a mutant by the codename of Mystique and joined Magneto a few months after her house burned down.

He knew what needed to be done. All mutants needed to be wiped out. In his eyes, they were nothing but heartless creatures that enjoyed the pain of others. He started in politics and helped build up Senator Kelly until he was able to be senator himself. He vouched for the mutant registration act. He praised Stryker's experimentation on mutants along with Weapon X's capturing of mutants. All of this was good, but not enough. There needed to be more anti-mutant awareness in the world.

"We'll see about that." Mystique smiled down at him one last time before she left the room and shut the lights off, leaving him alone in the cold dark room.

**End of Chapter 28**

Dang can't believe I'm up to chapter 28 already. We'll only a few more chapters until another one of my favorite chapters comes! Also if it seems I'm being mean to Scooter, I'm not. I'm trying to show him more as a leader (a way for him to distract himself from the pain of his lover trying to kill him).

Sneak Peek: **Shadow King**

"Face it, you will never defeat me. I gave you a chance to save yourself and you threw it away. Now you shall be destroyed along with your miserable pathetic friends that are trying to stop me." The Shadow King laughed at Rogue, who tried to pick herself up while at the same time pull the three knives out of her arm. She could feel the healing factor taking affect.

"Rather die than ta help ya." Rogue snarled at him and threw the knives on the floor as she finally stood up.

* * *

Shadowcat covered her mouth as tears formed in her eyes. On every mission she had been on or heard of teammates had gotten hurt or seriously injured that they could not leave the med bay for weeks. Even with Jean Grey the woman came back to life only to be killed again. She had seen the red haired woman's body after she had been killed a second time, but never saw Logan stab her. She never thought she would see another teammate die until this day.


	29. Shadow King

Sorry, hate fight scenes. Some might seemed like I skipped some scenes that's because I can't write fight scenes and this entire chapter was one big fight scene. Out of all the ones I've written for this story so far, this is the one I have been dreading the most. The others weren't as bad, but this kept going back and forth.

Special thanks to: **tfobmv18**, **xXxrenegadexromancexXx, DarkBombayAngel, laenamoradadeROGUE, RogueNya,** and **Wanda W!** Thank you guys so much for reviewing the last chapter and sharing your thoughts and opinions of the fic so far. It is very much appreciated! :)

Disclaimer: I own nothing, if I did, certain Marvel writers would not be allowed to touch the characters! I swear fanfic writers know more about the characters than Marvel does!

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It was not hard to find the Shadow King. The creature that inhibited Charles Xavier's body made itself appear in a deserted area of Maine. There were few trees around and there were more hills than flat grassy ground. The Shadow King stood at the bottom of a small hill with his arms behind his back and a smile on his face with his eyes closed. He did not need his eyes open to know who had come to attempt to defeat him. In fact, he was expecting them to show.

The X-Men had landed the jet a few miles back in case things got out of hand and the Shadow King destroyed it or used it as a weapon against them. Rogue stayed a half mile away from the rest of them and waited for Cyclops to tell her when they engaged with the Shadow King. Once they started, she was to try and concentrate on his mind and enter it. She kissed Gambit one last time for luck before they went to battle.

"I was wondering when you would show up, if you ever did. It makes me ashamed that I created a group that was not strong enough to find me earlier." The Shadow King spoke when the X-men were within feet of him. None of them made any movement. They were all warned that he would try to bait them into attacking and were to ignore his comments.

"We know you are not Charles Xavier." Cyclops spoke and placed his hand to his visor when the black eyes opened and stared at the group. A part of him was still afraid that they might have to kill Xavier in order to stop the Shadow King. The man had been a father to him after he had lost his family and his own brother wanted nothing to do with him. Xavier had filled the void in his life and made him feel accepted and loved along with the rest of the X-Men. He also knew that Charles would never want to be the reason for hundreds of murders and would want to be put down before anyone else was hurt.

"It just shows how little you know of your mentor." The Shadow King laughed as he began to hover in the air. "He finds a bunch of weaklings to fight for his foolish dream. He is a powerful telepath and yet does nothing. He could easily accomplish his dream if he entered the minds of his enemies."

"It just shows how little you know of him. He wants peace between humans and mutants, but doesn't want it done by force. He wants people to come to the conclusion that mutants are not a threat themselves." Cyclops argued back.

"It's already too late for that." The Shadow King laughed again before he continued. "And I have only just begun." He said as Iceman sent an ice beam at him and started the battle.

"Rogue, now." Cyclops whispered into the communicator as the rest of the X-Men began fighting the Shadow King.

A half mile away Rogue finally got the cue to enter the Shadow King's mind. She did not respond to Cyclops and got to work right away. She sat down on the grass and placed her right hand to her forehead and closed her eyes. She was not an expert at telepathy yet, but had gained some knowledge from Psylocke.

She felt like she was floating as her mind wandered through the field and passed by three of the minds of her teammates. She could see what was going in their minds, but ignored it as she concentrated on the Shadow King. His mind was different from the others. Cyclops, Polaris, and Iceman's minds were grey and open. Gambit's was a dark red and blocked up along with Chamber's with the exception of orange. The Shadow King's mind was purple and a wall blocked her out.

She stood in front of the wall and ran a hand across it. It felt like cement and was cold. She could hear yelling from behind her, but blocked it out. She knew the only way to help her teammates was to enter his mind and stop him. She clenched her hands into fists and began pounding on the wall using her super strength.

The purple wall did not crumble at first. She continued to pound on it and refused to give up until the wall was down. After three minutes of hitting the same spot a crack finally emerged and she smiled. She slammed her fist into the wall again and it slowly began to chip away. When a small hole was formed, she reached her hand in and began tearing the wall until she was able to fit through.

Rogue looked around as soon as she got through the hole and found herself in a coliseum. The floor below her was grey with purple fog that circled her legs. Above her were bleachers with shadows with yellow eyes staring down at her. She looked around and almost took a step back when she saw Xavier chained in a cell under the bleachers to her left.

"Professor?" She called and started walking towards him when a blinding flash blinded her temporarily and she felt a force send her back. She hit the cement wall leaving a dent before she fell to the ground. Pieces of the wall fell down on either side of her. She looked up to see something from a nightmare: the Shadow King.

His blue body stood nine feet tall with fog radiating off of it. His head was long with yellow glowing eyes looking down at her. His teeth reminded her of a shark's with each razor sharp tooth long and showing from the smile that seemed plastered on his face. Claw like hands extended from his long arms that seemed to reach down to his knees. "So, one was able to slip through. I was expecting them to try this, but didn't think one would be able to penetrate my shields." He said, his demonic voice sending shivers down her spine.

She glanced behind him to see Xavier's head hanging on his chest and eyes were closed. She knew she would have to wake him up somehow. She turned her attention back to the Shadow King when she heard cheers from the shadow crowd from the bleachers.

"I am surprise they send a little girl to fight me. It is almost insulting." The Shadow King glared down trying to intimidate her while taking a step forward.

"Maybe it's cause they don't think ya that big of a threat if they send little old me ta defeat ya." Rogue shot back at him and clenched her fists ready to fight.

The Shadow King only laughed only to annoy Rogue. She flew forward, planning on wiping that smug look off of his face. The Shadow King's left arm turned into a hammer and when Rogue got close enough, he swung it at her expecting to send her back into the wall. He didn't expect her to phase through it and fly through the other side and kick him in the back of the head.

Shadow King turned around and narrowed his eyes at her. "Perhaps I overestimated you." He said as he dodged out of the way of an ice beam that was aimed at his legs. A metal spear formed in his hand and he threw it at Rogue, directing it with the stolen powers from Magneto.

Rogue used the same power and stopped the spear before it reached her. It became a struggle over who had better control over magnetism. A torch on the top of the coliseum caught her eyes and she used her other hand to create a giant flaming bat to fly at the Shadow King. With the distraction and his concentration broken, Rogue was able to send the spear back at him and pierce his chest while the bat torched him.

Rogue quickly flew to the caged Professor and ripped the bars separating them. "Professor?" Rogue shook his arm and was relieved when he opened his eyes. "We gotta get outta here." She told him before another spear was thrown between her and Xavier. She looked over to see the Shadow King not looking pleased.

Rogue quickly broke the chains supporting Xavier in hopes that he would help her. She left him and turned her attention to the Shadow King. "Ya really know how ta piss a girl off." She snarled and flew at him once again. She knew she could only fight him and it was up to Xavier to kick him out of his mind. Otherwise, she could be fighting him for years.

**Brotherhood house **

Revanche found Mystique walking down the hallway heading for the stairs. "We have a problem." She alerted the blue shape shifter who turned to the purple haired woman. "The X-Men are outside." She warned and Mystique grinded her teeth.

"Tell the others to go out and meet them. I will not allow them to take the senator just yet." She snarled as she raced up the stairs.

Revanche walked down the hallway quickly to the TV room to alert the others. "Get outside now." She ordered to Avalanche and Toad who were in the kitchen. Both looked at her and turned back to what they were doing. She stepped into the kitchen and drew her katana from its sheath strapped around her waist. She pressed the blade to Toad's throat and his eyes grew wide. "It was not a request, it was an order. The X-men are almost here and Mystique does not want them taking Creed." She told the bug eyed mutant.

"Right." Toad squeaked when she pulled the blade away from him. She watched as Avalanche and Toad ran out of the kitchen and towards the back door. She made her way down the hallway back to the TV room. She could hear an applause coming from the television and the announcer speaking. She found Wanda and John sitting on the couch side by side with Pietro in a chair to their left glaring at them. Blob sat in the chair to the right fast asleep with drool hanging out of his mouth.

"We are under attack, Mystique wants you outside." Revanche told the younger mutants with the sword still at her side until she placed it back.

"Let me guess, the X-Men?" Pyro asked as she stood up with a small smile. He rolled the lighter in his fingers before he opened it and clicked it shut. He hoped for a rematch with Iceman.

"Whatever, at least it's something to do." Scarlet Witch said as she got up from the couch and glanced over at Blob. She raised her hand and elevated the glass of water that was sitting next to him and dumped it on him, waking him up as he shot up and wiped the water off his face. "Needed to get rid of the drool, it was disgusting." She commented as she turned back to John and her brother.

Outside in the backyard, the X-Men were approaching the Brotherhood house when they saw Toad and Avalanche exit through the door and spotted them. "This shouldn't be hard, ya already fried that guy." Wolverine commented to Storm as the group surrounded the two.

"Don't you people have anything better to do than to attack us? Dancing with the Stars is going to be on in a few hours." Avalanche complained to X-Men as he stretched his arms out in front of him.

"Don't worry, it's a repeat." Shadowcat stated.

Wolverine unsheathed his claws and Colossus metal armor form covered his skin. The clouds began to swirl around and the sky darkened as lightening flashed. The door to the house opened and Pyro, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, Revanche, and Blob stepped out.

"Let me guess you loss more members because no one wants to join the X-Men and want to take it out on us?" Pyro taunted as he noticed the team was much smaller than usual.

"At least our team can actually win and not get the crap beat out of it." Shadowcat shot back and then noticed Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. She had not seen them since they left the school. "I supposed it is fitting for a bitch to join another one." She gave a smile as Scarlet Witch's eyes narrowed and her fists began to glow. The lawn furniture was raised into the air and flung at the X-Men.

Colossus and Wolverine blocked the furniture being thrown and Storm used wind to send the pieces that Wolverine tore apart with his claws back at the Brotherhood. Psylocke ran past them and was heading for the door when Revanche stood in her way with her katana drawn. "You are not going anywhere." She warned and engaged the ninja.

Colossus protected Shadowcat from the flames of Pyro's lighter until Storm made it rain and put out the fire. Quicksilver ran around taking swipes at Wolverine and Jubilee. "Come on, is that the best you can do?" Quicksilver laughed as he smacked Jubilee in the face. She shook her head to clear the dizziness she felt and saw Quicksilver start beating on Wolverine who began slashing at the white haired mutant. She saw him coming back towards her when she used her powers and blinded him. Quicksilver screamed and covered his eyes, giving Wolverine enough time to hit him in the back of the head and knock him out.

Shadowcat held onto Colossus as Avalanche create a small earthquake, knocking almost everyone off their feet. They slowly moved closer to the earth moving mutant, but he caught sight of them and caused the earth to crack beneath Colossus feet. Shadowcat slowly crawled away from him and tried to get out of his sight so she could attack him from behind.

Scarlet Witch grew annoyed as everything she threw at Storm was blown back at her. She finally lifted her hand and hexed the white haired woman out of the sky and into the ground, but it did not cause the rain to stop which still left Pyro powerless.

Wolverine circled around Blob as the huge mutant laughed at his smaller size. "I've eaten meals bigger than you." He laughed at Wolverine, who looked more annoyed.

"I can tell ya probably weight ten times more than me too." Wolverine said causing Blob to stop laughing. He slowly began to run towards the feral mutant who charged at him. Wolverine leapt into the air and was able to claw him when he bounced off of Blob's massive stomach and was knocked to the ground.

"You're not allowed to make fun of me!" Blob yelled at Wolverine who was getting to his feet. He glared at the massive mutant and began wondering how he was to defeat him. He knew he couldn't get near Blob without being knocked back, and it looked like the only approach left was from the back.

"Ya don't make sense, bub. Ya made fun of yaself already." Wolverine rolled his eyes at the bigger mutant who began to charge him again. Wolverine ran at him a second time, but waited until he was within feet of Blob and dodged out of the way and turned around to jump on his back. He sunk his claws into the fat of Blob's back on both sides.

"Get off!" Blob yelled and continued running while trying to get Wolverine off his back.

Wolverine leaned right on Blob and it caused the mutant to turn right. Blob continued running and Wolverine planned on aiming for the Scarlet Witch who was beginning to hex Storm around. The white haired woman had enough time to send an electric bolt at Scarlet Witch, but it turned into a rainbow before it hit her.

"This is why I left the X-Men; you people are weak and pathetic." Scarlet Witch snarled as was about to hex Storm into the house when she heard a large thumping sound behind her. She turned around, but was not fast enough to hex Blob as he ran into her and came crashing down as Wolverine pulled his claws out.

"Ya alright, darlin'?" Wolverine asked as he helped Storm to her feet. She looked up at him and nodded. A part of her was happy that he came to her aid, while the other part reminded her that they were no longer together and he was only doing it because he was her teammate.

"Get off!' They heard Scarlet Witch yell from underneath Blob with only her feet sticking out. It almost reminded them of the scene from the Wizard of Oz when the house fell on the witch except they did not dare steal her shoes.

Avalanche continued causing the earth to shake around Colossus and did not notice Shadowcat sneak up behind him until she grabbed the helmet off of his head and smashed it into the back of his head. "Ow, what the hell!" Avalanche turned around and glared at Shadowcat. "You're that little girl I fought with before." He smiled down at her, almost causing her to be sick. She didn't understand why all the creeps were attracted to her with the exception of Piotr.

"I'm the little girl that is going to kick your ass!" Shadowcat said as she kneed him in the groin, causing him to yell out in pain and grab his crotch. She smiled at him before she punched him in the face.

"Well that's one way of taking down the enemy." Colossus commented as he stood by Shadowcat and wrapped an arm around her waist.

"I learned it from Wolvie." She smiled up at him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. They made their way back towards the group with Storm taking care of Toad. Wolverine had gone into the house to hunt down Mystique and Graydon.

"Looks like we're almost done." Jubilee cheered as she approached the couple. She popped a piece of gum into her mouth and offered them a piece, which neither wanted. She chewed a few times before she started blowing a bubble. A sudden scream caused the bubble to burst and it exploded all over her face.

**Shadow King Fight **

The team was finding it hard and easy at the same time to fight the Shadow King. All they had to do was distract him while Rogue fought his mind. On the other hand, he kept sending psychic blasts at each of them making it hard to concentrate.

Polaris and Iceman seemed to be having the hardest time dealing with it. The two would get back on their feet and fight until another blast caused them to clench their heads in pain. Cyclops, having been dating a telepath for years, had learned how to block out attacks, but even with that some parts of the blast came through. He was only able to shield his mind for a few seconds like how Jean had taught him before it went down and the blast would hit him. Chamber and Gambit both had full blown shields that blocked out any blasts and continued to protect their teammates when they went down.

"I hope Rogue finds the Shadow King soon." Iceman commented as he got back up from his knees with the help of Cyclops.

"We have to give her time. It might take a while, but we can hold him off." Cyclops told the younger mutant as he sent an optic blast at the Shadow King. The villain only laughed and dodged out of the way as the beam missed him.

_But we can't keep this up forever._ Chamber commented as pieces of wire that were buried in the ground came shooting up and being thrown at the X-Men.

"We have to try." Cyclops said as he blasted the wire before the Shadow King sent another psychic blast at them. This one was stronger than the others and sent all of the X-Men to their knees, including Chamber and Gambit. Chamber felt his shields go down temporarily and felt the blast assault his mind. He pushed his shields up as quickly as he could to recover.

Gambit's shield did not go down like Chamber's. Instead, he felt a crack on his shields and clenched his fist into the grass below him, dirtying up his fingernails as the dirt clumped in them. He never had this happen to his shields before nor did he know how to fix it. A majority of the blast did not hit his mind, only a section of it. However that was not what was affecting him. He had felt his powers acting up ever since his first run in with Weapon X. He was able to control a majority of his power, but now it felt like the dam was about to break and he didn't know for how long he could keep it back.

Iceman, Polaris, and Cyclops were still recovering from the attack and did not notice the Shadow King flinging more scraps of metal at them until it was too late. Gambit quickly recovered and flung his cards at the metal before it hit Polaris and Chamber sent a psionic blast at the one heading for Cyclops. Pieces of metal scrapped through Iceman's uniform and cut into his arm, causing him to cry out in pain.

"Y' alright, chere?" Gambit asked Polaris as he helped her up. Polaris held his hand and her other was to her head.

"I don't know how much more of this I can take." She answered and looked at him.

"Hopefully not much longer." He gave her a small smile and she nodded. She looked over and saw Iceman holding his arm with blood dripping down the side of his black uniform. She went over to help him.

_Cyclops, this isn't helping. We need to attack him or he is going to take us all out. Sending small blasts is not going to do anything. _Chamber complained to the X-Men leader.

"Just give it more time." Cyclops told him as Gambit joined Chamber. The two younger mutants looked at one another and both wondered how long this was going to last.

**Xavier's Mind**

Rogue flew at Shadow King and began pounding into him as he moved and slapped her away. She landed a few feet away, but was quickly on her feet again with her fists in front of her. "I must say I am impressed with you. I am willing to spare your life if you join me. Unlike the others that are trying fruitlessly to defeat me. They will all be dead soon and this world will be destroyed." He told her as she stood her ground.

"I ain't gonna join ya, I plan on kickin' your ass. Maybe after that Ah'll relax later and have a glass of wine." Rogue said as she flew at him again and phased through him. She grabbed a hold of his shoulders and began to freeze them, but one of the shadows that was in the crowd jumped out and grabbed her. She screamed as she felt the shadow rip something from her.

She fell to the ground and held her chest as she saw the shadow that attacked her disappear. She didn't know what it did, but something felt like it was missing. "You can try, but it won't matter. Even if you are able to defeat me, this world is still doomed." The Shadow King warned her as another shadow assaulted her.

Rogue cried as the shadow did the same as the first one, and then another one appeared. "What the hell are ya doin' ta me?" She yelled at him as the shadows disappeared like the first.

"I gave you a chance to save yourself and you threw it away. Now you shall be destroyed along with your miserable pathetic friends that are trying to stop me." The Shadow King laughed at Rogue, who tried to pick herself up. Metal knives formed in the air beside him and flung themselves at Rogue. She brought her arm up to protect her face and they embedded themselves in her arm.

Rogue pulled the knives out of her arm and watched as the healing factor took effect. "I am surprised you don't know what is happening. You can't feel it?" He asked as Rogue held the knives in her hand and tried to use her powers to fling them back at him, but nothing happened. She tried it again, but she couldn't feel the same control over the metal like before.

She finally realized what the shadows were doing, they were stripping her of her extra powers. She looked up at the torch and tried to control the fire, but nothing happened as she raised her hand. She wondered what other powers she had lost. She knew the healing factor still work along with her flight, and super strength.

"Ah don't need extra powers ta defeat ya, Ah'll kick your ass with my own hands!" Rogue yelled at him and flew at him. She punched him in the face and kicked him on his side, but he only took a step back and did not seem affected. "Ya ain't gonna hurt anyone else and ya sure as hell gonna leave the Professor's mind!" She yelled as three bone claws appeared through both of her knuckles.

She savagely attacked him repeatedly by slashing him, but his body only reformed. She wished that she had been with the rest of the team where it would have been more affective. Like with Malice, anything she did to the Shadow King in Xavier's mind would have no effect. The only way to defeat him was for Xavier to push him out of his mind or for the team to destroy Xavier.

"I don't think so." The Shadow King snarled as another shadow came up behind Rogue and grabbed her. She felt two shadows enter her and she fell to the ground. She watched as the bone claws slid back in and her knuckles began to bleed. The shadows emerged and disappeared next to the Shadow King. "Soon you will be nothing, but a pathetic human. That is what you wanted originally, isn't it? For your powers to be gone so you could be normal. Well you are getting your wish, and don't worry you will join your friends in death." The Shadow King told her as he assaulted her mind and she clenched her head.

"Enough!" Xavier shouted from behind them. Rogue lowered her hands and glanced at Charles Xavier, who looked and acted more like the man she had met years ago with the exception he was standing. His eyes were narrowed and he took a step forward towards the Shadow King. "I let you take control over my mind, but not anymore. I let your darkness corrupt my mind, but I will end it." Charles said as he continued walking up to the Shadow King as if he wasn't a threat.

The Shadow King turned his attention to Xavier. "You did not let me, you were weak minded. That is why your student destroyed you." Shadow King stated before he tried to move, but found his body paralyzed. His eyes, the only thing that was able to move, looked down at his limbs and they would not obey him.

"I am sending you to the far ends of the astral plane where you will not disturb anyone. You are only an entity, just like the Phoenix, that wants to create evil and destroy innocent lives. The world will be free of you." Xavier told the Shadow King as a white portal appeared next to the blue entity.

Cracks of lightening emerged from the portal and wind began to blow inward, catching the shadows that had been watching and dragged them in. Rogue covered her ears as the screams from the shadows shrieked worse than someone running their fingers over a chalk board. "You will not be sending me into that abyss!" The Shadow King shouted after breaking free of Xavier's grip on him.

Shadow King slowly moved forward, trying to get away from the glowing white portal that tried to suck him in. Rogue wiped the blood from her hands on her uniform. She watched as Xavier raised a hand to his forehead and began trying to push the Shadow King into the portal, but the monster wouldn't budge. "Oh no ya don't!" She snarled as flew at the Shadow King and shoved him in with a punch to his chest. The extra push was all Xavier needed to send the Shadow King through the portal and into the furthest ends of the astral plane.

**Brotherhood**

Shadowcat covered her mouth as tears formed in her eyes. On every mission she had been on or heard of teammates had gotten hurt or seriously injured that they could not leave the med bay for weeks. Even with Jean Grey the woman came back to life only to be killed again. She had seen the red haired woman's body after she had been killed a second time, but never saw Logan stab her. She never thought she would see another teammate die until this day.

By the house, Psylocke and Revanche's fight had come to an end with Revanche's sword lodged in Psylocke's chest and the blond haired woman's psy-blade in Revanche's skull. Both women had screamed before they fell to the ground lifelessly.

"Betsy!" Jubilee screamed as she and the others raced over to their fallen teammate. Colossus knelt down beside her on the left while the two young girls pulled the sword out and tried to cover the wound. Psylocke's eyes were open and staring at the sky. She would open her mouth slightly before closing it as if she was trying to breath.

"Come on, you can't do this." Shadowcat cried as she pulled the sleeve she had torn from her uniform away to find it coated in blood and more was pooling out. She looked up at Colossus who didn't know what to do. Storm finally sent Toad into a tree and knocked him out before she could join the group.

"How is she?" Storm asked as she knelt down next to Colossus. She took Betsy's hand and felt her pulse slowing down and blood start dripping from the corner of Psylocke's mouth.

Wolverine raced up the stairs catching the scent of Graydon from the upstairs. He didn't bother checking the room and headed for the last door to the right. He kicked it open to find Graydon Creed lying unconscious on the bed with his hands and feet unbound. He could smell Mystique's scent in the air, but the shape shifter was nowhere to be found.

"Coward." He muttered as he checked Creed's pulse to find it normal. He found a gash on the side of the senator's head, but he would be fine. Wolverine lifted the younger man into his arms and carried him down the stairs. By the time he got back outside he found his teammates huddled around the form of Psylocke with tears in their eyes.

Wolverine set the senator down on the ground and slowly made his way over. He already had a feeling he knew what happened. Jubilee was crying and Shadowcat's head was buried into Colossus's chest. Storm looked up at him with tears in her eyes. He bowed his head for their fallen teammate and said nothing.

Storm finally wiped her eyes and stood up. "We need to get back to the mansion. We need to find out how the others are doing." She said trying to remain calm even in the hardest situation. She was supposed to be in charge of the team and one had died during the mission. Once again she felt like a failure.

"I'll take Psylocke, Colossus take the senator. We'll drop him off on the way home." Wolverine instructed the other male who nodded.

The team slowly began to walk away from the Brotherhood house while it's members began to recover. Pyro was digging Scarlet Witch out from Blob's fat and Quicksilver was beginning to regain conscious. Avalanche was still on the ground try to recover. Toad hung upside down from a tree with his clothes and skin scorched.

The purple haired woman opened her eyes and looked around. She saw the Brotherhood regrouping and the X-Men nowhere in sight. "It's so like Mystique to ditch us." She heard one of them say, but did not pay attention.

"You alright, Revanche?" Quicksilver asked the purple haired woman who looked at him with confusion.

"What?" Psylocke asked as she caught sight of her appearance in the glass of the door. She was no longer in her body, but in the body of Revanche's.

* * *

The team was in a defense and ready for another attack when Xavier clenched his head in his hands and slowly lowered himself to the ground. The others looked at one another and wondered if this was the end. They had been distracting the Shadow King for quite a while and prayed it was all over.

Cyclops was the first to approach Xavier's still form while the others stayed back in case it was a trap. Cyclops bent down next to the Professor and opened his eyes to see that they were reverted back to normal. He sighed in relief that they did not have to kill Xavier if Rogue failed. He didn't know if he could ever bring himself to do it or allow anyone on the team to.

Cyclops turned back to the others and nodded to them. Iceman, Chamber, and Polaris moved forward to join Cyclops while Gambit jogged back to where Rogue was located to make sure she was okay.

"Sir?" Cyclops asked as he sat Xavier up with the help of Iceman. Charles slowly opened his eyes and looked at the X-Men around him. A sigh of relief escaped him as he closed his eyes for a brief second.

"Are you alright?" Iceman asked him as he let go when Xavier was able to sit on his own, but Cyclops did not leave his side.

"Yes, thanks to all of you." Charles finally spoke. "I wish I had the strength all of you have shown. After the Phoenix killed me, a part of her darkness crept inside my mind and began to take over once I regain consciousness. I wanted to stop it, but it grew stronger until it took over and began destroying everything." Charles said with guilt hinted in his voice over the actions that he committed as the Shadow King.

"I was lucky that you were able to help stop the Shadow King before he did anymore damage. I am proud of each of you." Xavier told them before Chamber and Cyclops helped him up. Polaris checked on Iceman's arm which they had wrapped in the torn cloth of his uniform for the time being.

Gambit found Rogue lying on the ground with her eyes open staring at the sky. A small smile was on her face that only widened when Remy came into view. "Y' alright?" He asked her as he sat down next to her.

"Ya, I'm just glad it is all over. It was a lot harder than when Ah fought Malice, but the Shadow King is gone and we can finally move on." Rogue told him as she sat up. "Ah also lost a lot of my powers during the fight. In a way, Ah'm kinda relieved. Havin' all those powers meant more responsibility and expectations from everyone. Ah don't want that. Ah wanna be able to act my age instead of twenty years older." She stated.

Remy smiled and moved a piece of white hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear. "I'd still love y' even if y' had none." He said as she stared into his glowing red eyes. She brushed her bare hand against his and felt his fingers between his.

"Ya love me?" Rogue asked him, her eyes beginning to tear up.

"Since de moment I laid eyes on-" He began to say when Rogue kissed him and ran wrapped her hands around his neck. He brought a hand to the side of her face and into her hair.

"Ah love ya too, swamp rat." Rogue whispered to him as they broke away from the kiss.

**End of Chapter 29**

This was my solution to getting rid of all of Rogue's powers mainly. I don't care for a Rogue with all powers and is unbeatable. It makes her boring and mary-sueish to me. I like her with her super strength, flight, and absorption powers, which she still has. As for Psylocke, she is now has the purple hair and how people usually see her. She's not dead, but the X-Men think she is. Also, the Wolverine riding Blob part was inspired by the video game. I know it's cheesy, but I am writing at 2 in the morning and that is what my mind comes up with.

Also sorry, as I've said before, hate fight scenes I am bad at them. Especially trying to explain when it's on the astral plane. At least there is no more of those. Well, there might be one.

Sneak Peak: I had part of the next chapter written a month ago, unfortunately it's not that good of a sneak peak, but it's the only thing I got so far and it is kinda creepy. Also, two more chapters until a familiar face shows up again!

_Remy ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "Every man has a price to charge and a price to pay." He repeated what Jean-Luc had once told him. _

"_Exactly, dis is y'r price to pay for de choices y' made." Etienne explained to him. _

"_Is dere somethin' I can do to stop it?" Remy asked his cousin with pleading eyes. "Please Etienne, I need to know what I can do to save her. I can't lose her like Bella or Genny." He fell to his knees in front of his cousin_


	30. Images of the Future?

Hope ya enjoy the chapter :)

Special Thanks to: **tfobmv18, RogueNya, xXxrenegadexromancexXx, gambitfan85, Akiko Sakura**, and **Wanda** **W**! Thank you guys oh so much for reviewing the last chapters *hugs all around* I very much appreciate it!

Disclaimer: I own none of these characters, I write only to entertain myself!

* * *

The return home on both Blackbirds was not as joyous as they thought it was going to be. Storm's team communicated with Cyclops's and told them what happened to Psylocke. Everyone had been devastated by the news and knew how hard Angel was going to take it when he found out. Out of everyone in the mansion, he had grown the closest to the British woman.

Their anguish only continued when they returned to the mansion to find police cars on the front lawn. The teams did not bother changing out of their uniforms and instead met in the hallway of the lower level to decide what to do. They all knew why the cops were there.

"I'll handle this." Scott told the others, but Xavier placed a hand on his arm.

"They are here for me." Xavier announced as he caught some of the thoughts the policemen were thinking.

"What? Is this because of what the Shadow King did?" Kitty asked the older man and felt tears form in her eyes. They had finally got their mentor back and did not know if they could lose him again.

"The Shadow King and I have two separate personalities, but the actions he committed were my fault. If I had been strong enough to defeat him before things got out of hand those people would never have been killed." Xavier explained to his young student who began to tear up and buried her head into Piotr's chest.

"But you can't turn yourself in!" Jubilee cried.

"There is no other way. If I argue that it was not me that destroyed and killed those people, they will try to close this school down and investigate all of you. As much as I hate being away and not being able to guide all of you it is for the greater good. Those who have lost a loved one because of the Shadow King want redemption for the loss and if they know I am locked up it might bring some peace to them. I need you all to keep my dream alive while I am gone." Xavier instructed. He knew they did not want to see him go, but he knew what needed to be done.

"You can count on us." Logan was the first one to speak. He understood Charles intentions faster than the rest. It would look bad for mutant kind to get away with destroying a city and murdering hundreds. People were already mad at the damage Magneto and Phoenix had caused and did not need more reasons to be angry at mutants.

"We will try to rebuild this school and your dream." Ororo promised as she came up and hugged the older man.

"I have complete faith in you and Scott that you will rebuild this school to what it once was." Xavier told her and turned to the others. "Whatever I said during my time as the Shadow King I did not mean. The Shadow King was fueled by people's darkest fears and told them what they did not want to hear." He said while looking at Rogue knowing that the Shadow King drove her out of the mansion with his words.

"Each of you has your own strength inside even if you do not see it in yourselves. Stick by each other and do not allow darkness to creep into your souls. You are the heroes this world needs to protect it and there is no one else that I would trust than all of you." Xavier finished as more of the group went up to hug him good-bye. Each of them hugged him with the exception of Logan, Remy, Lorna, and Jono who didn't know him that well or in Logan's case it was more his style than a hug.

"Thank you for everything." Rogue whispered to Xavier as she let him go and backed up a little. She stood next to Remy and leaned against him as he rested his chin on the top of her head. They watched as Xavier finished saying good-bye to everyone and go into the elevator with Logan and Scott beside him. Ororo wiped her face of any tears in her eyes and went to find Warren to tell him of Betsy while Hank followed Piotr to the med lab with Betsy's body.

* * *

Warren stepped into the med lab and felt his face go numb as he looked at the stiff body of Betsy Braddock. He shook his head as he stepped forward and ignored Hank as he looked up and gave the young man a sympathetic look. He knew even though they had only recently met that Betsy had been helping Warren in his time of need. Now, he had lost the one ray of light in his darkness. "I'll be down the hall if you need anything." Hank told Warren before stepping out of the med lab.

Warren did not acknowledge the blue furred mutant and kept his eyes focused on Betsy instead. He had been told the news by Ororo but didn't believe that Betsy was dead until he saw her body with his own eyes. He pulled up a chair and sat down next to her and pulled her hand into his.

"Oh god Betsy." Escaped his lips as he broke down and leaned his face into her side. He didn't understand why everything was being taken away from him. First his father, then his wings, and now the woman he was beginning to fall for. He wondered what he did wrong to be punished like this. Why did no one else suffer the way he had to?

He sat up and wiped his eyes and traced the side of her cold face. "You tried to give me hope, but there is none. Not for me." He whispered and bowed his head. He had no idea what he was going to do now. Everyone that was ever important to him was taken away and he didn't know if he could handle another loss.

He got up from his seat and pulled his chair away from him while still holding her hand. He didn't want to stay at the mansion any longer. This was the place where he met her and now she was gone. He couldn't go back home because that was his father's home. Everything was gone. He ran his other hand through his hair in frustration.

He was sick of all of this. He was sick of the world, sick of life, and sick of everything happening to him. He was done with the X-Men and everything they stood for. The only reason he stayed was because of Betsy and he thought his wings would grow back.

He kissed Betsy on her cold lips one last time before he backed away from the bed. "I'm sorry." He whispered before leaving the med lab to pack up his things and leave.

**Later That Night**

Remy walked Rogue to her door and kissed her goodnight. "Y' gonna be okay?" He asked her as she shook her head silently. She had overcome all her fears, Malice, and the Shadow King, but in the end it didn't matter because she may have won the battle but not the war. By defeating the Shadow King they still lost Professor Xavier.

"Yeah, just wish Ah had been able to stop the Shadow King before he destroyed the city. Then the professor would still be here and not locked up." Rogue sighed sadly.

"It ain't y'r fault. Y' be de one dat stopped him and probably prevented more deaths. Y' can't blame y'rself for what y' have no control over." Remy raised her chin so her emerald eyes looked into his ruby ones. She almost wanted to point out that he did the same, but said nothing. What Tante Mattie told her she would not tell anyone.

"I supposed." She sighed before he kissed her again.

"Y' need some time to relax. Dere been too much stress around here. Tomorrow we ignore de world and I show y' a good time, just de two of us." He whispered against her lips causing her to smile and wrap her arms around him to bring him closer.

"Ah'm all yours tomorrow, sugah." She gave him one last slow kiss before they pulled apart and she finally went into her bedroom for the night.

Remy walked back to his room thinking over ideas of what he and Rogue could do the next day. She deserved a break from everything and needed to relax and he planned on making sure she was stress free by the end of the night.

He entered his bedroom and put on a pair of sweat pants before pulling back the covers and went to sleep. After the day he had spent he figured he'd have nice dreams about Rogue and himself. Unfortunately, he was not that lucky.

_The sun was hidden behind the darkened clouds and flashes of lightening lit up the sky every few minutes. A cold breeze blew through causing Remy to tighten his duster closer to his body. He stuffed his hands in his pockets as he gazed as the cement gravestones each lined in rows above the black dead grass. _

_He bent down on one knee in front of the first and removed some brown vines that had twisted and curled themselves around the tombstone. A sad expression filled his face as he gazed upon Belladonna Boudreaux's name scribed in the stone. He ran his fingers over each letter, noticing the lightening flashing off the stone after he did. Five other tombstones lay in a row as he gazed over at them. _

_He knew he was dreaming. He had just said good-night to Rogue only moments before and knew he was probably remembering all those who had died. Every once in a while he would have dreams of growing up with Jean-Luc, Henri teaching him on thieving, meeting Genevieve and so on. While it was common for him to remember them that way, he never had dreamed of their graves. _

"_Cause it's not." He heard voice say from behind him. He instantly stood up and turned around to find no one there. He knew that voice. He may not have heard it in years, but he would always remember it. _

"_Where are y' Etienne?" Remy called out to his dead cousin. It had been ten years since he had seen his cousin, Etienne. He remembered being distraught when the fifteen year old had been killed by one of the assassin's. _

_A teenage boy with light reddish hair materialized against a tree opposite of Remy and the tombstones. He wore a sad smile on his face and his arms crossed over the black robe he was dressed in. "Y' playin' grim reaper?" Remy asked his cousin who only chuckled and stepped forward. _

"_Non, only came to mourn de lost." Etienne replied as he stepped forward and looked down at the stones. Remy watched his young cousin run his hand over each stone until he got to the last. It was almost like he was afraid to touch it. "Funny, I can see dem anytime I want, and I still choose to mourn dem." He shook his head and turned away from the stone he was in front of and looked at Remy. _

"_How are dey?" Remy asked Etienne who shrugged. _

"_Dey fine. Uncle finally reunited with his wife. Henri been watchin' over Mercy most of de time. Belladonna is enjoyin' de peace with her pere." Etienne answered before turning to the stone. _

"_Den why come here and mourn if y' can see dem?" Remy asked, finally abandoning Belladonna's grave and walking over to stand by his cousin. He could swear he saw tears in his cousin's eyes, but they refused to budge. _

"_Cause dey all happy, except dis one." Etienne nodded his head in front of the grave and held his hand in a fist in front of his chest. Slowly, he moved his hand towards the stone he had been frightened to touch before and a bolt struck his hand before he could touch it. "So much pain. So much misery dat will never end." He said as Remy put his hand on the stone and wasn't shocked when touching it._

_Remy bent down and began removing the twigs that surrounded the grave. He found a dark substance, almost like charcoal underneath and began scrubbing it away with his hands, only for them to become blackened. He wiped it on his shirt and pants to try to get it off, but it only stained his clothes and remained on his hands. _

"_What de hell is dis?" Remy shouted and backed away from the tombstone as soon as the name became present. He looked over at his cousin with an angry expression on his face. Was this some kind of sick joke Etienne was playing with him. "I ain't dead." He pointed to the stone with his name written on it. _

_Etienne gave him a sad smile and finally one of the tears broke loose from his eye and ran down his cheek. "Non, y' ain't dat lucky, cousin." He told Remy and looked down at the grave again. "Death would be too kind for what is to happen to y'. I will miss y' when y' leave though. I make sure I come here whenever I can and watch over y'r memory." Etienne said to him, but Remy now had a disturbed look on his face. _

"_What do y' mean?" Remy asked in a low voice, almost a whisper. Etienne looked up at him once more. _

"_Dere's fates worse than death, cousin. What is livin'? A person enjoyin' life to de fullest, being happy, bringing joy to others. Bein' able to know who y' are and what y' stand for. Death is when y' have done all of dese things, and it is de final resting place. So many fear it and think it is terrible and try to escape it. Dey do dis because dey don't understand. Livin' and death always co-exist with one another in each and every person." Etienne explained to his cousin. "For some, dey lose it all. Dere soul becomes lost and can't find its way back. Dey lose what they were and what it is to be happy. Dere soul is completely gone and I can't think of a worse fate for anyone. Dey neither living nor dead." Remy looked away from his cousin and down at the tomb with his name inscribed. _

"_Why?" Remy asks automatically without even thinking. Etienne stepped away from the tombs and headed back to the tree he first stood by. Remy turned to see the once blank field now filled with hundreds of tombstones. The ones in the front were clean and grey while the ones behind were splattered with blood. _

_Etienne stopped in front of the middle tombstone and pointed down to it. Remy moves forward and his eyes widen as he looks down at the name scribed on it. "Non." He whispers and feels his knees give out in front of the stone. He could feel himself shake slightly as he raised his hand to touch the tombstone, but never made it. Instead, he let it fall dead to his side. _

_At the moment he demanded himself to wake up from his nightmare. None of this was real. It was just a stupid dream he was having and wouldn't remember in the morning. He was desperate to wake up or even dream of anything else than seeing Rogue's tombstone sitting in front of him. _

"_Dis can't be." Remy choked and swear he could feel vomit in his throat. He felt Etienne rest a hand on his shoulder as he also looked at the grave. _

"_It is and just like de rest, it's your fault." Etienne told him with no emotion in his voice. Remy stared at the grave a few more seconds before he looked up at his dead cousin. "Don't worry, just like de others, dere was nothin' y' could do." Etienne said and then thinks about it for a moment before shaking his head. "Non, dere was somethin' y' could have done, but y' blew dat chance. Now because of y', she is gonna die. Just like Belladonna and Genevieve. All because y' listened to a man y' believed to be y'r enemy. If y' went on and did de deed, non of dis would have happened." He shrugged before taking his hand off of Remy's shoulder and pointed to the graveyard. _

"_Creed is gonna do dis?" Remy asked him and stood up. He grabbed his cousin by the shoulders demanding an answer. "Tell me!" He shouted. _

"_He might, he might not be. All I know is her and many others fates are sealed." Etienne explained to him without being fazed by Remy's rash behavior. He knew his cousin was upset and was surprised he wasn't throwing him against the tree. "Y've changed and y' don't realize it. Y've forgotten de first thing uncle taught y'. If y' had listened to dat advice none of dis would have happened." Etienne told him and watched Remy take a step back as he recalled what his adopted father had said. _

_Remy ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "Every man has a price to charge and a price to pay." He repeated what Jean-Luc had told him. _

"_Exactly, dis is y'r price to pay for de choices y' made." Etienne explained to him. _

"_Is dere somethin' I can do to stop it?" Remy asked his cousin with pleading eyes. "Please Etienne, I need to know what I can do to save her. I can't lose her like Bella or Genny." He fell to his knees in front of his cousin. _

_Etienne reached down and held left Remy's hand in both of his. He only shook his head with sympathy. "Like hers, y'r fate has been sealed, cousin." He said and pulled his hands away, leaving something in Remy's hand before he disappeared, leaving Remy alone in the cemetery. _

_Remy stared at where Etienne had once been before he looked down at his hand. The black substance that had been on his grave still clung to his hands, but it had changed into blood that was dripping from them. He looked down at his clothes and realized where he had wiped his hands had also changed to blood as well. He felt the familiar texture of a playing card in his hand before he turned it over to reveal the Ace of Diamonds. _

Remy shot up from his bed and felt sweat dribble down his brow and glisten down his chest. His entire form felt like it had been drenched in sweat. He ran a hand through his hair as he thought about the dream he had.

**End of Chapter 30**

The dream sequence originally was longer than that, but it gave away TOO much information on what is to come and we don't want to spoil it for everyone. Besides, I've been leaving hints in different chapters.

Sneak Peak: Don't really have one for the next chapter, only thing I'll give hint to is, _SHE_ is back! I've been waiting to write this chapter since chapter 19 so don't be surprised if it comes out quicker than usual.


	31. A Price to Pay

Well, it's been fun :)

Special thanks to: **RogueNya, Mint, laenamoradadeROGUE, tfobmv18, Akiko Sakura**, and everyone that has read, reviewed, added this story to their favorite and story alert.

Disclaimer: I own nothing, for the last time!

* * *

_**Every Man Has A Price To Charge. . .**_

"_How can you do this, Nathan? It's sick!" Rebecca Essex screamed as she found her husband had taken their dead child's body to the basement and began running experiments on it. To Nathaniel Essex, death was a failure he would not allow to conquer his son. He did not care what his wife or anyone thought no one stole from him!_

"_I am bringing him back. I will not allow my son to die." Essex snarled as he shoved his wife away from the body. She shook her head in disbelief. When did her loving husband become such a monster? Why wouldn't he allow their son to be buried and rest in peace? She knew that he would never be able to bring their son back. _

_She waited until he turned his back when she snatched the small body and ran for the stairs. "Rebecca!" He shouted and raced after her. She refused to look back as she almost made it to the top of the stairs when she felt him catch her foot with his hand and trip her, causing the small body to fall from her grasp. She screamed as he wrestled over her to get his dead son, but she wouldn't let him. _

"_No, let him go! He's not alive and is not coming back!" She shouted and pulled on his sleeve. "You need help. We need to deal with this together, but this is not the way!" She cried, but he only slapped her across the face. _

"_With the new technology that has come out, I will be able to bring him back. I will not give up on him like you did." Nathaniel yelled and grabbed her by the shoulders and began to shake his wife. _

"_When did you become such a sinister man?" She asked before he threw her down the stairs, breaking her neck in the process. _

Robert Windsor aka Nathaniel Essex stared up at the altar as the memory of his family rushed through his mind. He was never able to bring his son back and finally accepted defeat. After that he made it his life's mission to not allow the same weakness that plagued his son to do the same to others. He knew mutants were the next step in evolution and would help rid the world of weakness.

The two robed men shoved Essex up the stairs and pushed him to his knees in front of a grey bony corpse that sat on a throne with its eyelids shut. He tried his best to breathe in from his mouth so he didn't have to smell the disgusting odor in the air.

Essex jerked back when the corpse opened his red eyes and looked down at him. Essex stared at the creature wondering exactly why he had been brought before it and what this thing was. Of all the mutants he had studied over the years, he had never come across anything like this.

"This is the one, master." The black robed man spoke as he bowed his head.

"Who are you?" Essex finally spoke and received a smack in the head from the man on his left.

"You were not given permission to speak." He chuffed at the scientist. The corpse slowly raised his bony fingers.

"It is alright. My name is Apocalypse and I am the first and oldest mutant in the world. You, Nathaniel Essex, I have chosen to work and rule under my kingdom once I have retaken over this world. Mutants have grown weak over the years and those who are not strong enough do not deserve to live." Apocalypse spoke as he lowered his arm and sat back on his throne.

"Why would I work for you? There are plenty of other opportunities I can take." Essex argued and tried to get up, but the two men held him on his knees.

"I have been watching you since I awoke a few months ago. I know the price you are willing to pay to achieve your goal. If you join me I will free you from your humanity and give you high tech. equipment that will help you with your research." Apocalypse offered to Essex who began to consider the option. He would no longer have to rely on organizations such as Worthington Labs or Weapon X to supply his research. The only downside would be following Apocalypse's orders, but then again being offered power was very tempting.

"I will think about it and get back to you." Essex replied and tried to stand up again, only to be held down still as Apocalypse's mouth opened to laugh. Essex cringed as he saw the rotten teeth inside his mouth.

"That was not an offer, it is what is going to happen. I have been in this weakened state for far too long and require another body. The only way I can leave this one is if my clan finds one of my descendents and transfers my mind to it. Until then I need generals to keep me safe and to spread the word of my return. That is why I need you. You will form my horsemen and help me rid this world of its weakness." Apocalypse told him as the robed men grabbed Essex and hauled him forward against his will.

Apocalypse lifted his bony arm again and pressed his index finger to the center of Essex's forehead and the scientist immediately felt the effects of the ancient mutant's power. His skin began to lose all color and turn chalky white to almost a silver color and his lips dried into black. His glasses slipped off the bridge of his nose as he seizured and his once brown eyes began to fade into a menacing glowing red while all his teeth became razor sharp. Apocalypse removed his finger from Essex's forehead and revealed a red diamond.

Apocalypse had scanned Essex's mind and saw every event in the man's life. He figured he would pick a name for his new creation and why not go with what his wife called her before she fell down the stairs. "Sinister, stand before me." Apocalypse ordered as the robed men let go of Essex. He wanted to see if the man would be loyal to him or if he would have to make adjustments.

Sinister slowly got to his feet and stared down at Apocalypse. He felt the changes of his appearance as well as the changes inside of him. He felt powerful and could feel his powers coursing through him. Before his transformation moments ago he was uncertain and a part of him was scared and nervous of what Apocalypse was going to do to him. Now he felt nothing. No happiness, sadness, or anger.

"I will get to work, master." Sinister bowed before Apocalypse. He turned around and walked down the altar. He kept his thoughts to himself as he left because he did not want Apocalypse catching up on what was on his mind. If he did, he would be killed instantly.

Truth was, Nathaniel Essex never took orders from anyone. He was his own boss and knew he was always right. The problem was he had weaknesses. He had to go what others told him to get what he wanted. Sinister was the same, except without the weaknesses. He knew he would have to bid and manipulate his time until he could turn on his master. He would do as Apocalypse wished until he learned of how to destroy his new master and his clan.

**X-Mansion**

"Yeah, this is great. We save the asshole and now he is declaring a declaration of war on mutants." Logan muttered as he, Scott, and Ororo stood around the TV watching the news. Senator Graydon Creed traumatic experience was in the newspaper and all over the news on every channel. "We should have just let the little shit get killed."

"Logan." Ororo chided him before she turned her attention back to the television. "I suppose we have a new threat to worry about." She sighed. They finally defeated every enemy and now a new one developed. She wondered if things were ever going to quiet down or were they always going to be on the lookout for another threat.

"We will deal with whatever he does. If he starts an anti-mutant group and starts attacking us we will stop him, but we must proceed with caution." Scott instructed the other two and knew he would have to make the announcement to the other X-Men.

Logan smelt a familiar scent in the air and growled before he turned around to see Rogue and Gambit laughing as he opened the door for her. She was dressed up in a pair of jeans and a green tank top. He was dressed in a pair of jeans with holes around the knees and a dark purple shirt covered by a jacket that reached down to his knees. Logan's eyes narrowed as he saw the arm wrapped around Rogue's waist.

"Where are ya two goin'?" Logan demanded as he startled the couple.

"We're goin' out for the day." Rogue replied with a smile on her face. Logan stared at the young girl that he had brought to the mansion for a moment. In all the time she had been here she had never seemed as happy as she was now. He glanced at the Cajun and then back at Rogue. If he made her happy then he'd be happy for them. If the Cajun broke her heart, no one would find evidence he even existed by the time he was done with him.

"We'll be back before night, don't worry." Rogue told him, thinking that was what he was about to say.

"Come back whenever you want. You're both adults." Logan said catching her by surprise. She looked over at Remy and then back to the man she considered her father, despite what he has told her in the past, and nodded.

"Ah'll see ya later." She waved and Remy opened the door again for Rogue as Logan turned back to join Ororo and Scott.

"Hey, we're coming!" Kitty shouted as she and Piotr came down the stairs just as Rogue and Remy stepped out.

"Thought y' told dem dat it was just de two of us." Remy asked his girlfriend as a cool breeze blew by.

"Ah told Jubilee and Bobby, but forgot about Kitty." Rogue replied as she waited for the younger girl to come outside with Piotr.

"So where are we going? There's a new store that opened up at-" Kitty began to say as Piotr shut the door behind him. Rogue silenced her by placing her hand up.

"Kitty, it's only me and Remy that are goin' out." Rogue tried to explain without hurting the other girl's feelings. Kitty's right hand shot up to her mouth in shock.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry. All I heard was you're going out and I thought everyone was." Kitty apologized and turned back to Piotr who was starring at something in the distance. "What's wrong?" She asked him and then looked at where he was staring along with Rogue and Remy.

"Is dat a person?" Remy asked as the four young mutants moved closer to a white sheet that was covering a person's body. The only thing visible was the person's legs and by the look of them they were a woman's.

"This better not be some horror movie where we touch the person and they sit up and stab us." Kitty muttered as they reached the body and Rogue pulled back the sheet to reveal a woman's face. She instantly dropped the sheet and took a step back.

"Oh my god, get the adults!" Rogue shouted to Kitty and Piotr. Kitty was too much in shock to move so Piotr took off towards the mansion. Rogue bench down by the body while Remy stared down at the woman.

"Y' normally have people bein' dropped off naked here?" Remy asked Rogue.

"Well this is not the first time someone has come back from the dead. It's getting' quite common actually." Rogue answered as she heard Scott, Logan, and Ororo approaching from behind and took a few steps back and walked over to stand by Remy. She knew it was better not to get in the way.

Logan stopped a foot or two away from the woman's body and stared down at it as Scott fell to his knees and began checking her over. Ororo stared in shock and a hand covered her mouth. "It can't be." She whispered as Scott cradled the woman's head in his hands and sat her up. "She's alive?"

Scott ignored the others around him and instead concentrated on the woman lying in his arms. He watched her chest rise slowly. He felt his heart swell with joy as he buried his face in her red hair. She was alive. "Jean." He said softly and hugged her close.

Unknown to the X-Men, an intruder stood outside near the gate and ran his clawed hand along the bars. He watched the X-Men take Jean into the mansion and a cruel smile played his face. He did exactly as he was ordered to by his contact. Now all that was left was to get paid, but it did not mean he was finished with the X-Men. "This is far from over, runt." Sabertooth snarled and looked at the mansion. He wanted a rematch with Wolverine. One where there would be no interference of his friends. Just a one on one to the death. He knew he would have to draw him out, but it would be worth it.

His other favorite toy was also staying in the mansion, but he knew the Cajun wouldn't stay there long. He rarely stayed in the same place for more than a month before moving on. When he decided to leave, he would finish off the Cajun as well.

"See ya around, Jimmy." Sabertooth smirked before leaving with thoughts of destroying the other mutant's life.

**Unknown Location**

Mystique sat at the desk of her hotel room. She was quite pleased that everything went well with Graydon. She had no intentions of killer her son, only anger him enough to try to declare war on mutant kind. She had no love for her son and he felt the same way with her. Over the years they both began to hate each other and one day he went up to her and demanded to know who his father was. She had protected him for years, but he was an adult and figured if he wanted to meet his father, then she would introduce him to his new worse nightmare.

If there had been one thing she had learned during her time working for Magneto was he was correct: humans and mutants can never get along. She had always despised those who were normal because they tormented her when she was younger because of her blue skin before she learned how to shape shift. Her parents abandoned her and she was taken in by the Alders family. She became best friends with her adopted sister, Irene who was also a mutant that could see into the future. Anytime she had a vision she would write it into her diary and kept it hidden.

Irene told Mystique of the diaries and gave them to her before she died of cancer eight years ago. She had been warned that she must not change the events that appear on the pages even if it was something she did not approve of. Mystique gave her friend her word she would not change the events, however that promise would soon be broken.

Mystique slowly turned the next page to Destiny's diary. She studied the picture for a moment before she scooted her chair away from the desk and got up. She shook her head in denial as she stared down at the page. Everything that had been in the diary would come true. She had seen Magneto being stripped of his power. She had seen Xavier kill hundreds.

"I'm sorry Destiny." Mystique looked up towards the ceiling trying to ask forgiveness from her dead friend. She knew she would have to intervene before this event happened. She looked down at the page that showed a girl with brown hair and white stripes lying face down in a pool of blood.

**Downtown New York**

"Jeff stop it." A girl named Stacy laughed to her boyfriend as he began running his hands down her body and kissed her neck. She wrapped her arms around him and brought him closer and ran her hands through his hair. A cold breeze blew by causing Stacy to shudder and she started feeling colder.

"Come on, let's go somewhere a little more private." Jeff said to his girlfriend and grabbed her hand and began pulling her away from the house. It was a boring party and he had better ideas of fun they could have.

"I don't feel so well." Stacey said and began shivering. She felt spikes of pain running through her head and her fingers were freezing, even though they weren't cold. She felt tendrils of pain rack over her mind and began feeling nauseous.

"You're just nervous. It'll be okay. I'll be gentle." Jeff said and wrapped his arms around his girlfriend, when she suddenly cried out in pain and fell to her knees. He stared down at her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Are you alright?" He asked, suddenly thinking she was serious.

Stacey shook uncontrollably and then stopped. Jeff heard a soft chuckle as she stood up and turned around to look at him. "Never better, lover." She smiled wickedly before she kicked him in the groin and punched him in the face, sending him to the ground.

"Now what to do with you?" She laughed and straddled his hips. She ran her long finger nails down his face. In her head she could hear screaming, but blocked it out. She was now in control and was going to keep this body as long as she could.

"Stacy?" Jeff asked weakly as she felt down to his pockets and found a Swiss army knife and pulled it out.

"Sorry, Stacy is not here." Malice waved the knife in front of him.

**Unknown Location**

"This is perfect." A dark voice hissed from the shadows as his fingers tapped the armrest of his chair. "Everything is going according to plan and the X-Men will be mine!" His laugh filled the room until someone turned on the lights.

"Um, yeah, only evil villains are allowed to do the whole plan thing. You're not evil, you're fat and ugly." Deadpool said from the doorway with his arms folded over his chest.

"You are mistaken, I am Mojo!" Mojo declared and sat up in his chair. Deadpool shook his head and stepped forward. He reached behind him and pulled out his gun and aimed it at the large mutant.

"Sorry, I'm sure you came up with a lovely plan on how to defeat a group of mutants you have never met. I'm sure the readers would have loved to see how it played out, but the author said there are enough villains for the next fic, so I'm going to have to kill you. It's nothing personal, it's just no one likes you." Deadpool announced.

"What are you-?" Mojo began to ask.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

Deadpool walked over to Mojo's body and inspected it. He saw the body twitch and shot him one last time in the head. "Okay, my job is done. See you later!"

**. . .And A Price to Pay**

**The End**

I couldn't fit it into the story, but Apocalypse awoke when Xavier used Cerebro in X2 at the end. I couldn't find a place to put it.

When I rewrote the plot to this story in December it kept going and so I made a cutoff point. This is the cutoff point because so far this story has been fluff and not much going on.

The next part to it: **A Price to Pay**, is much darker than this fic. I'm also cutting my cast down quite a bit. 8 main characters are given the choice to either leave on their own free will or they will die, and some will be getting killed off unfortunately. This one is also a lot longer than this one, I know that for fact. As soon as I finally finish my chapter layouts for the story, I will begin writing it. it should be up in 2 to 3 weeks.


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